Alleyway Fight

"Kinrue! Kinrue! Come back to your senses, little bud." She flinches when someone snap in front of her.

"Oh, are you saying something Renren?"

"I told you, she's not listening to every word you utter. It's such a waste of time." Shenyue grabs the ice cream spoon and takes a bite of double dutch ice cream.

After the class hour, Kinrue suddenly remembers the upcoming birthday of Raven. She wants to take that opportunity to make Callie and Raven step up on their status as friends, so she called Renkai and Shenyue to meet in an ice cream shop.

It's already dark outside when they came in the meet up place. Though there're many students coming around, they still find a suitable spot to talk. Despite it, she can't help but to make her mind wonder elsewhere because of the group date that her friends talking about.

She can only heave a deep sigh whenever the thought comes flashing in her mind.

"Listen Kinrue, we're talking about the upcoming birthday party of Raven. His parents always throw a party for him, so it's still the same for this year. Only the close friends and schoolmates are welcome. Do you have any plan for that day?"

"Yeah, I called you because of that matter. I prepare this gift for him before we even agree to help each other." She took out a rectangular box inside her bag and give it to them. "He'll definitely like it. Give it to that b*tch and tell her to use it as a birthday gift for him."

"What's this? Anything Callie gives will be fine for Raven." Shenyue said.

"It's a plus point. He keeps mentioning it out of nowhere whenever we're together and I notice it in his room too, so I have guts he'll like it out of all the gifts he'll receive."

"Will you come?" Renkai asked.

"It's unnecessary for me to come, but I'll celebrate his birthday separate with the rest. Since the party probably will start in the evening, I'll do it in the morning."

"Anyway, I took out a copy of Callie's schedule for the next entire month, like what you instructed. What are you going to do with it?" Shenyue asked while handling a piece of paper on her.

"I need to match their schedule for them to meet up. The two of you, along with the rest of your circle, are my bridge to get those two idiots closer. There's no way I can show my face in front of them. The sh*thead will realize everything I'm trying to do."

"Tsk. I don't understand why do you need to hide everything if your deal is to help each other find a proper partner? As far as I can see, it's a favor for both of you." Renkai said, while looking at them.

Kinrue chuckles and looks outside the glass wall, propped her hand under her chin. "You know your friend better than I am. He's a man of pride."

"H-huh?"

"Nianan told me he change after encountering me. Those words I understand it well. He changes before I can notice it. I couldn't avoid the worst-case scenario that might befall to us." She heaves a sigh, glance at them with a quick assuring smile. "Although I know he doesn't want others to interfere in his own destiny, I still want to force myself to write it in my own way by working behind the curtains. It's the only way I can think to sue him away out of my terrible life."

"You want to severe your relationship with Raven? Do you know how much he hated that kind of person? Are you sure you want to be hated?" Shenyue said in raged.

They stare at each other straight into their eyes. She even gritted her teeth while clench both fists. Her eyes are full of anger and disappointment that made Kinrue chuckles.

"Many people hated me. His hate will not hurt me as long as he can live the way he wants. He takes care of the useless me even though we hate each other. I want to repay him by drawing a line between us."

"Hey, your words seem like pertaining to something..." Renkai couldn't finish his words, instead he look away.

"You hit the bull's eye man. He might not be aware of it, but if Nianan notice it already, how come if I didn't, right? The sh*thead falls head over heels with only one woman and didn't look to other or get involved, but I think my existence brings a crack on that tight defensive iron wall." She said. "A good man shouldn't be with a wicked woman, although he'll end up with a bad b*tch, it's rather fine so I want to draw a line. We shouldn't cross it no matter what happened."

An awkward silence engulfs them as they finish eating the ice cream.

In the middle of it, Kinrue accidentally glance outside the glass wall again and saw Raven across the streets with three unfamiliar men wearing a uniform from different schools. She doubts it's Raven, so she closes both eyes again, but when she looks back, it's still the same. She rubs her eyes, but it's still the same. A tall young man with a wavy hair, wearing a varsity jacket of Lunaris High School Men's Volleyball Team.

"Isn't it Raven?" Shenyue said that made her flinch.

"No way, those men I've seen them before. It's bad news." Renkai didn't hesitate to stand and leave without saying something.

"W-wait, what's going on? They don't seem like in a bad ter—"

"Those men are his former teammate's way back in elementary school in their swimming club. They always bring trouble and bully Raven, so we all hate them." Shenyue said in a hurry. She picks up her things and leave, following Renkai's direction.

On the other hands, Kinrue left speechless and dumbfounded at their table, processing everything she heard. She looks back towards the direction of Raven and those men, but they walk inside a narrowed alley, away from people's sight. Amidst of her puzzled thoughts in mind, she remembers the words that Mirko said before. It's about the group of men who confront Raven and blurted out such ridiculous remarks.

She chuckles before getting all her things and walk outside the ice cream shop. Neither Shenyue nor Renkai around the place anymore. She didn't even see them across the streets.

Although it's none of her business, she can't help but to feel mad just remembering the words she heard from Mirko. It's true Raven doesn't want to tell anything about his past, but upon hearing it from his own mouth that night, she can't just stand and do nothing, especially seeing those men who ridicule him.

She clenches both her fists and waits for the traffic lights to turn green to cross the streets. It didn't take a minute before she can cross along with others and walk straight to the alleyway they last saw them. She thought it's just a common alley with a short distance, but it has a long path. It's dark and has a stinky smell. There's even a squeaky sound from the rats running as she continues to walk and the more steps she takes forward, the more she hears less from the main road.

It's a scary path for an ordinary woman who has a lot of fears, but luckily she's not one of them.

After a few more steps, she sees the end of the alley. It's not a dead end, rather there's a flickering light coming from the wide space, full of metal scraps and other junk materials. It's more like an abandoned warehouse where bad people spend time during the night. She heard some noises from her position so she has guts. It's the right place.

"You called a backup, but they're as weak as you."

"A man who got knock out in two to three punches and a scared cat woman. Loser boy, you didn't have anyone useful in your sides, right?"

"What do you expect of this elite boy, Peter? He's only good at showing off and making people around them feels a little like what he did to Leo."

"Leo is a splendid swimmer, but because of this man, he died pitifully. He's enjoying his life to the fullest, wearing a varsity jacket... What's this? A volleyball club? Last time you're in a soccer team, then went to tennis team and even tried to play basketball. You're good at everything. It's the reason many people envy you, but you're a pitiful human being."

The men's laugh resounds the entire area.

Despite it, Raven didn't react and letting the two other men make fun of him. His eyes are dull, as if there's no life on it. In front of him, there's Renkai lie down, knock out from their punch with a blood on the side of his lips while Shenyue kneeled down holding the hand of the other man, talking to stop it from pulling her hair. She's crying out of fear, begging the man to let go of her.

No one from them notice Kinrue's existence at the entrance. The scene she saw just now made her furious and grit her teeth out of anger.

"You f*cking heartless man. How can you sleep every night after ruining someone's life?" The man in front, who's pulling Shenyue's hair, pushes her on the side before he comes to punch Raven on the face. It made him fall down on the ground. The other two kick him continuously and Kinrue heard all his grunts.

"You can't even win in national competition and abandoned everything out of selfishness. If you didn't accept the offer before, Leo will still be alive and an athlete now. It's you who ruins him. You ruin everything, bastard!"

The man named Peter is about to kick him hard on the stomach, but someone's foot stops it. He tried to overpower it, but it's useless. He looks in front of him and saw a furious eye and menace aura surrounding in Kinrue.

She looks at Raven, who's not saying anything rather than enduring the pain in silence. It's as if he's out of his right mind. There's also Renkai, whom she treated as a friend and a wail of Shenyue. The madness inside her keep arising until she couldn't suppress it anymore. She put down her bag and kick the foot of the man with all her strength that made him step backward.

"Who the hell are you? How did you end up here, woman? Do you want to get hurt like those fools?" One of the man said and is about to touch her, but her reflexes are much faster. She holds the wrist of the man, twisted it before she flips him over. "Argh?!"

"Dennis, what are you doing? Do you really let that woman overpowered you? She's just a small prey." The other man came to attack her, but she give him a butterfly kick. Peter use that chance to attack her from behind and grab her hair, pushing her on the steel gate.

Kinrue let out a painful sound from her mouth and before she can recover, she saw a man coming in her direction with a steel pipe on the hand. The man smirk, running towards her direction and is about to hit her, but luckily she avoids the attack in a sheer luck. She spit some blood and kick the steel pipe that made it flew somewhere. With a heavy breathe, she glares at those three men who's coming in her direction with annoyance on the face. All the words they blurted out before came out inside her mind like a loop film.

"Man, you did a huge mistake hurting my man." She mumbles, sneering at them. "You played your usual commoner game in an elite, so let me teach you how an elite play their usual game in commoner like you."