Chapter 4: A Normal Day

A few days had passed. Azide rolled over on her bed, trying to face away from the sunlight before an annoying and blaring alarm had rung. Her tired eyes opened up, as she attempted to blow up the alarm clock but decided against the idea. She decided to unplug the clock instead.

Why do I even keep this thing here? I have a phone.

She looked down on that said phone, yes, it was a modern day one unlike her father who still owns a phone from the 90s. A yawn was given too.

September 20th, huh? Also I woke up 20 minutes later than usual. Wait-

That day was indeed special, and as the girl made her way into the bathroom she decided to send out a little text to her friends.

Yoooo. Today is raid day, I bet that a bunch of idiots are gonna run in and die instantly LMAO

1 short shower session later…

Louise was up and ready for school, wearing the required maroon vest, along with the navy blue pants, a white button up with a black and red bowtie. Now, she could wear a skirt but the hem of it was either way too short or long!

She had walked out of the house and into the self-driving Mercedes while looking down, head tilted to face her phone.

Yep, the raid is trending today…Also, Azide is trending too- Let's check it out, I guess-

As she scrolled down on the Dropper app, she noticed clips of her final kick, even the initial explosion made. The name of Jaime Fall had also come up within the conversation at hand, the general message was about confusion and gratitude that there was a hero who helped the undercover cop that was there. There were also a few comparisons to cartoon characters…

Huh, they're really comparing me to that guy- Well, I guess it's better off that way, maybe I can keep-

Her train of thought was interrupted, something wasn't right but she couldn't put her finger on it. Louise searched her mind for what had been missing. What happened everyday that didn't happen today… She was racking her brain once more, she always seems to do this.

Damn… It really feels like something is missing today… Then again, if I forgot it, it probably wasn't important.

Soon enough, after 10 or so minutes, the girl arrived just on time for school, getting out of the car and looking at the front of the school, covered in glass panes. Unlike most other cities or towns, Roswell was completely modern, never wanting to keep the old look of buildings the same, old brick buildings were getting demolished everyday and replaced with the modern concrete, glass and steel or even buildings made of a Quinquenium alloy, but those were mostly in the first district, or well… the administrative buildings meant for politicians, judges, lawyers, etc.

Louise finally met up with a friend, walking up to him and roughly patting his back. Despite being a few inches shorter, she still tried to play rough with him.

" What's going on, Steve? Ready for our shitty class together? "

The taller man, with mocha blonde hair and blue eyes turned around. He was in the middle of picking something up from the ground and had let out an exaggerated yell when he got hit, before turning around laughing.

" Yeah yeah. Luckily there's nothing to do today. "

Thus the two friends made their way into homeroom, of course, the voices of gossip flowed through the room like air. With conversation about the eventful day that was occurring.

How many people do you think will get shot at the Raid today?

Nah, no one's gonna get shot, didn't you hear? They're gonna make a music festival or something.

Did you hear about what happened in the first district today?

Yeah. Now we have a bunch of cops at all the schools!

Well, it doesn't matter, we're not doing anything wrong!

Other than that… have you heard about Azide?

Yeah! That cool kung-fu girl!?

And thus the mumbling continued, with the theories about who Azide was, the reason for the terrorists attack, the raid on Area 51 had gotten more wacky.

" So, what do you think about all of this, Steve? "

Louise had sat across from the blonde man, taking out a laptop from her backpack, along with a bag of chips.

" I think we just don't have enough information. Did you see anything? "

As the two were conversing…she heard a little bit of gossip that she couldn't help but tune into. At first it was just about Azide, but there was a few words that made Louise gravitate towards the conversation.

Did you see that undercover cop with the terrorists? He was super cool!

Louise's eyes widened as she heard the words 'undercover' and 'cop'. She had just remembered what happened the day before…she was getting excited, was he really there? Was he really back? Could she finally see a childhood friend of hers?

Of course, as Louise had been staring into space, someone had been snapping at her. It was Steve, who tried shaking her out of the daze which she partook in.

" Hey, Hey! The teacher's here. Better start paying attention before Mr. Robinson sends you to detention. "

This made the noirette suddenly look to the left, where the teacher would be sitting. After all, in this odd configuration, the teacher would be sitting in the leftmost corner of the room. He barely moved from that spot, only moving when helping with a hands on assignment.

Everyone in the school had their own laptops, and were typing away at the powerpoint slides that came with a lecture. Because websites that had instantaneous messaging were blocked, Louise and Steve were stuck using the school's default apps for messaging. Email was too risky, they had to use MacroHard's Notebook. (Red is Steve, Blue is Louise)

You were zoning out, is everything alright?

Yeah, I'm fine. I just realized something

What happened?

Uh, one of my friends from the orphanage I came from is here, in this city.

Oh really? What's their name?

Dante.

Louise was in a daze, zoning in and out during class… luckily, she caught the moments where the teacher would call on her and gave her favorite response.

" I DON'T KNOW! "

Of course, this always led to the girl getting in trouble, and being yelled at. However, she was not sent to detention this time. Soon enough, class would be over and the two made their way out. Louise had a relaxed look while Steve didn't seem amused. To him, it was a little embarrassing to be seen with Louise sometimes, just because she was an absolute meathead. She didn't have much of a filter, save for excessive cursing. Not only that, but the girl was a hothead, thinking with her feelings way more than her head.

" You know, Louise, one day Mr. Robinson is probably going to suspend you. "

Louise, who had the bag of chips from earlier in her hand, currently indulging with the salted potato goodness. Despite having food in her mouth, she still responded!

"Hm? Whaddya mean, buddy? Scared that I won't be there to give you the answers of the homework? "

Compared to the smug expression on the noirette's face, the blonde looked like he was fuming with rage. Not just because the girl was tooting her own horn, but because she was tooting said horn with the knowledge that she's absolutely incorrect! He's the one who provides answers to homework she doesn't do, in fact, with summer homework, Louise was the type to wait until the last day to finish it, and he was the one to help her!

" If you get any more smug, I'll punch you. "

Louise chuckled in response to that angered quote from Steve, reaching into her backpack and tossing him a bag of chips. The bag was colored a bright green, and had bold words saying 'HOT! JALAPENO CHIPS'.

" Here then, I'll bribe you not to punch me, now cmon, eat it up before one of the deans confiscate it. "

Steve clenched the bag of chips, glaring at her, despite there being a smile on his face as he put those chips inside of his pocket.

Of course, you got me the flavor I can't stand.

As they made their way inside of the classroom, the two were met by another figure, one with brown hair and blue eyes, only an inch or two smaller than Louise, with a similar physique to Steve but with a little more muscle on him.

" Oh, there you two are. "

The man had multiple earrings on a single ear with gems that matched his eye color, beautiful sapphire gems, the lowest one on his earlobe had hanged 2 separate sapphires connected by diamonds.

" What's going on, Jae? "

Steve said, pulling the chair back and sitting next to him. These two were great friends, childhood friends who knew each other from birth. Jae was a lot more relaxed than Steve, and could resonate a bit more with Louise.

" Well. Louise over here got herself in trouble for the billionth time, I'm telling you she's a pain. "

The noirette chuckled, sending an elbow towards blonde's side, hitting his rib directly. Steve had bent over a bit, putting his head on the table. The man turned his head away from his childhood friend and back onto the little terror he was friends with. He noticed a comedically angry look from Louise. One that could strike fear into him while making everyone in the background laugh.

" Now now, I'm literally right here. I'll beat you up if you badmouth me again! "

As she was ready to give another elbow to the man's side, the door suddenly opened! The teacher was there and the two had gone back to normal, fixing their posture and demeanor within a few milliseconds. The three then looked at each other as the teacher took attendance, and well… They all laughed it off, much to the dismay of the teacher.

A few class sessions later…

Louise had figuratively fallen down at the lunch table, laying her head down with her arms extended out. Exasperatedly sighing while having an exhausted look.

" Ahhhhh…Finally, lunch, I feel like I'm going to die if I go to school any longer! "

The two boys with her, took out their own lunches and stared down at the girl sitting in between them with unamused, and slightly bored eyes.

" We only went through 4 class periods. We have 3 more, Louise. "

Steve was the responsible one, it was only natural he'd give a response similar to that one. Jae looked at the two and just laughed, taking out the burger that he packed for himself and taking a hearty bite out of it.

" Wait, you got a burger from KoB? (King of Burgers), gimme some! "

With the smell of that tasty sandwich, Louise's energy was rejuvenated. She energetically tried to reach for the man's food and was met with a juice pack to the face.

" No way, I paid for this with my own money, go get a job and buy yourself a burger! "

The students could go wherever they wished during lunch, some went home, some stayed in school and some went to a restaurant of their choice, despite there already being fast food chains in the cafeteria. Because of Roswell's prestige, many people had an ample amount of money on them either that or had money from their parents, even those in public schools.

" Aw cmon! My dad hasn't given me my allowance yet, I'll pay you back for the burger, I prooomise, just a bite, cmon! "

Steve decided to intervene, throwing a juice packet towards Louise again. This was just to both annoy and distract her. He could have fun too, even if he was the so called 'serious' type. Louise turned around, and tried to give the man a noogie.

" You'll pay for that-! "

Then she noticed, a rather intense and cold glare behind her. Louise slowly turns her head, facing behind her and well… it seemed to be a dean. The tall woman didn't look too pleased with her, or the man she was attempting to give a noogie to.

" You, young lady, and you, mister are attending detention today, make sure you're not late. "

Louise sighed, defeatedly as Steve's eyes widened meanwhile Jae laughed it out, hollering through the lunchroom as the two were now sentenced to detention. The dean gave a cold glare towards Jae, which made him shut up for a little bit, but Jae resumed after the dean had left.

" Well, aren't you two just the happy bunch? Now you get to spend detention together, how lovey dovey~! "

In protest, the two rose up, hands flat on the table as they smacked it in unison, both of them giving a fierce look to deny such claims

" We do not like each other! "

The two said this in unison, much to Jae's amusement, such a scene even made the the students in nearby tables stare at the two, which in turn caused a plethora of embarrassment. The two sat down and for a few minutes; an awkward silence ensued. Of course, the silence broke and lunch proceeded as usual…

The end of the day.

Louise had her backpack on the anterior of her body as she packed up while walking down to the detention room with her last book finally making its way inside of her backpack.

Dad's gonna kill me-

A simple thought as she noticed the police officer next to the door, she proceeded like normal but as the girl passed the tall police officer, time slowed down again, a simple glance at the officer caused a bit of trouble within Louise, the guard's eyes had widened as well… but time flowed normally, without a single real stoppage and noirette made her way inside of the detention room.

The dean from earlier provided her with a seat, on the opposite corner of where Steve was sitting…

Did no one get in trouble today?

Due to the situation, it was either doing schoolwork without her laptop or just… sitting without saying a word… She tried turning to face Steve, but it really wasn't happening, he was in the front right corner and she was in the bottom left… maybe… maybe she could try a code.

Right- We did learn Morse code for one of our classes… maybe if I…

She had taken out a piece of paper from her backpack along with a pen, and started to scribble something down, she needed to write all the letters and their morse code counterparts. Then… she started tapping away, tapping the word "STEVE" until her friend noticed.

... - . ...- . (Steve), ... - . ...- . (Steve), ... - . ...- . (Steve), ... - . ...- . (Steve).

He noticed the 4th time she did it, when he took out a worksheet and a pen and tapped away as well

.-- .... .- - / -.. --- / -.-- --- ..- / .-- .- -. - ..--.. (What do you want?)

-. --- - .... .. -. --. --..-- / .-- .... .- - .----. ... / ..- .--. ..--.. (Nothing, What's up?)

-.-. --- -- . / --- -. .-.-.- / -.-. --- -- . / ..- .--. / .-- .. - .... / ... --- -- . - .... .. -. --. --..-- / .-- . .----. .-. . / - .- .-.. -.- .. -. --. / .. -. / -- --- .-. ... . / -.-. --- -.. . .-.-.- (Come on, come up with something, we're talking in Morse code.)

..-. .. -. . / - .... . -. --..-- / -.. .. -.. / -.-- --- ..- / .... . .- .-. / .-- .... .- - / .... .- .--. .--. . -. . -.. / .- - / - .... . / .- .-. . .- / ..... .---- / .-. .- .. -.. ..--.. (Fine then, did you hear what happened at the Area 51 raid?)

-.-- . .- .... --..-- / -.. .- -- -. --..-- / .--. . --- .--. .-.. . / .- -.-. - ..- .- .-.. .-.. -.-- / .- - - .- -.-. -.- . -.. / .. - / .- -. -.. / - --- --- -.- / - .... .- - / .--. .-.. .- -.-. . / --- ...- . .-. .-.-.- / .. - .----. ... / -... .- ... .. -.-. .- .-.. .-.. -.-- / . ...- . .-. -.-- .-- .... . .-. . / --- -. / - .... . / -. . .-- ... / .-. .. --. .... - / -. --- .-- (Yeah, damn, people actually attacked it and took that place over. It's basically everywhere on the news right now)

The dean noticed this, it took her a little bit to notice but she slapped the meterstick down on the table.

" If you continue this, I'll extend your detention for another hour. "

The two dropped their pens due to shock, and decided to put their stuff away, but as they did… an alarm had sounded, and at the same time, the ground around them had shook.

There's been an explosion!?

" We have to evacuate, now. Get out of here! "

The teacher immediately went to the door and walked out, looking left and right. To her left, the exit was free… but to the right… the exit was blocked, with rubble and fire on the flame. The three had to escape, the building still held its sturdiness, it didn't seem that the roof was about the collapse, and the two ran towards the edge of the hallway, trying to get out.

" There was a guard here right?! Where is he?! "

Louise was asking the teacher in a panicked state, now she could use her abilities to boost them out of here… but that would reveal she had super powers, that was out of the question… and right as they were about to reach the edge… rubble had fallen down, blocking the exit.

Shit… I really have to use my ability now.

The other two were panicking, both trying to get the rubble off as Louise cocked her arm back and was about to break through that rubble, and the door… but right before she did, someone had grabbed her arm.

It was the guard, he shook his head no and walked in front of the rubble.

" Where were you!? "

The teacher asked before he simply replied with…

" Move. "

He pulled his arm back and punched forward, shattering the door behind them, leaving the two in awe, and they escaped.

A news helicopter was above the four, camera pointed down towards the teens and adults.

" THERE ARE SURVIVORS! "

The guard had looked at Louise, Steve and the teacher, he had taken off his helmet and went towards them.

" Are you all alright? I apologize for my absence, but there was something I had to do. Luckily I made it back on time. "

Steve looked bewildered, he was more focused on the man's raw strength. The teacher was taken aback as well, now that they were safe the sudden realization that this police officer punched concrete, glass and steel away with a single hit settled in.

" Who… Who are you? "

Louise was completely frozen. She was stuck in thought over who this man was, and by the look on his face… he wasn't going to answer.

" You were that… undercover cop right? "

The police officer immediately turned to Louise, a somewhat sad expression was plastered on his face, as he nodded.

" Yes, I was. "

Finally the helicopter had landed, with the news crew coming towards them to get an insight of what just happened. Maybe to sneak in a few interviews as well…

There was just one thought that had been in Louise's mind…

What just happened…?