Chapter One| Where it all started
"The beginning is always today."
Maschenny lived in a ordinary world, lived an ordinary life that she always called boring and went to an ordinary school. It was just something a high school student, soon-to-be graduating, lived. She had always wanted to live a pretty interesting life, one with thrill and excitement. One that could make her feel different emotions other than getting bored, crying and laughing over the animes she loved reading and the mangas she loved to read. Add manhua, donghua, manhwa. . .whatever, someone who wasn't a weeb or an Otaku wouldn't understand that.
In a nutshell, she was just a typical girl.
She sighed as she turned to a corner of the campus's hallway, heading to the restroom. The classes, maybe in just half-hour, more or less, would be over. But her last class had already ended since the teacher left early.
Even though she wanted to go straight to her home, she still have works to do, since she was also the vice-president of the school's student council (she was forced to fight for the position with money, but in the end, she won, anyways) and the captain of the school's woman's volleyball team. Although it wanted to ditch the paperwork she would be doing after practicing volleyball, she just couldn't.
When she arrived, a few meters from the restroom, she saw two male students fighting beside the woman's restroom room, blocking most of the door way.
'You gotta be kidding me. . .'
The male who was holding the other one's collar punched him hard on the face, making a bruise. It seemed that the fight had long began when she still wasn't at the scene as the one being pinned at the wall already had bruises and scratches on his face.
Maschenny scratched her scalp out of frustration and scowled at the students as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Hey, no fighting. Leave him alone and go back to your class."
The two male students turned their attention at her, but it seemed that they weren't familiar with her since they just looked at her with questioning eyes. They must be lowerclassmen.
The one who had been punching the other one raised a brow at her, then he let go of the poor boy's collar which made him slide down the floor. The one punching faced Maschenny fully with a smirk. He was pretty tall for a lowerclassman and his build was also good, maybe he was an athlete? But Maschenny also hadn't seen this student until now. She recognized the poor one on the floor but not this one. Maybe a transferee. Who knows.
"What's this? Are you trying to play hero?" The taller student questioned. "Go away, kid. This is a fight between men."
Maschenny felt a twitch on her brow, she kept herself cool and smiled. "Perhaps, you don't know who I am?" she asked, but inside her head she was already cursing the lowerclassman.
'Who's this jerk calling kid? He may be taller than me not more than a whole ruler but he also don't know the vice-president of the student council?'
"Should I know you? Perhaps, you also don't know me." He scoffed then glanced at the poor boy, whom they noticed to be trying to flee the scene. "Hey, stay right there. I'm not done with you," the taller student hissed.
'Aish. . .this brat. Yeah, who are you? Just a nobody in this school. I don't really want to get in trouble again but I guess that won't do.'
"You know, you should just keep your hands to yourself," Maschenny demanded.
"Huh, trying to play hero? You have a guys for a girl." The taller student began cracking his knuckles. "You should run away while you have time. I don't have much patience and I don't care if you're a girl."
Maschenny did what he did. She cracked her knuckles, loosened her wrist and breathed. "Then, I also shouldn't care if you're a boy."
The boy clicked his tongue and groaned, "You're really starting to get on my nerves." He turned his back at the vice president, patting the poor student to stay in his place, but the other student was focused on the girl, seemingly he had realized who she was and began trembling in fear.
The taller student thought he was shaking because of him and smirked, when he turned to face Maschenny, she had already planted a strong punch on his face that made him fly a few feet away from the poor student and her. The taller student rolled on the floor, quickly getting up and Maschenny huffed.
'Add to the responsibilities of being the vice-president, was to keep the peace in the school and to stop violence, except. . .'
When the boy fully got himself up, the vice-president laughed herself towards him and kicked him in the stomach making him roll away from them, again, and a pained groan could be heard from him.
However, before Maschenny could even hurt the boy once again, someone yelled, "Maschenny!" She quickly froze on her spot, the poor boy also froze and the taller guy remained silent on the floor.
She slowly turned to her back, where the voice had came from, and there, she found the chairman of the school glaring at her, with her childhood best friend from behind.
Except that it was only my way because the others wouldn't just listen to me because I'm a girl.
Though, almost all of the students were now afraid and respectful of her, either they had seen her beat up other or they had been beaten up by her personally, there were some who still hadn't learn their lessons and some who were arrogant.
'Like the punk there on the floor. . .'
"What did you do this time?" Orland Sinclair, the chairman of Sinclair Academy, and of course, you would know by the name that he owned the school. Also, Maschenny's legal guardian.
"I just thought that guy how to keep his hands to himself." She gestured at the male student on the floor, who was trying to crawl himself out of their sight but immediately got caught in action. "Hey, stay there. We'll bring you to the infirmary soon."
Cohen Forster, her childhood best friend and also the treasurer of the student council, as soon as she said that, walked from behind Orland to the guy on the floor to help him get up and started dragging him at the infirmary's direction.
Orland sighed, massaging the bridge of his nose. "How many times do I have to tell you to go easy when you're teaching lessons!" he exclaimed and Maschenny sheepishly smiled.
"Whatever, go help the other one. Come to my office after," Orland told her and walked away with another sigh.
Maschenny hurried to the smaller student's side, helping him get onto his feet and escorted him to the infirmary. When they arrived, the taller student was already getting checked by the academy's doctor, on the bed.
She sat the other student down on to another bed beside the taller one. "Just rest for now, 'kay?" She told the smaller student as he fidgeted. "Don't worry, I'm sure he's not going to hurt you again, right?"
Maschenny smiled at the taller one which made the lowerclassmen in horror but she didn't broke her gazes with the taller one until he nodded reluctantly. She smiled cheerfully after that.
"Maschenny, this one is a transfer student, and you already sent him here?" The school doctor, Miss Kim, inquired, but of course, they already know the answer to that.
"Well, he was also punching this guy," she said, pointing at the other student.
"Well, it's their fault. Anyways, stay here to you can spare Miss Kim the bother of looking out for them until all of the classes are over," Cohen pointed out with a huff.
Maschenny raised his brows. "Eh? But the old man told me to come to his office after this?" she stated, swiping a little of her bangs out of her face.
"Is that so? Let's go, then." Cohen immediately turned to his heels and opened the door of the infirmary to leave.
The girl followed behind him, turning back a little with a mischievous smile as she looked back at the two lowerclassmen. "If any of you got into trouble again, I'll be sending you to the hospital next, alright? Also, you, the taller one. Remember me, Maschenny Aldine. The vice-president of the student council, the captain of the woman's volleyball team and the so-called she-devil of this academy."
A shiver run down their spines as Maschenny'd flashed another grin at them. Miss Kim could only sigh and began checking the bruises and scratches of the smaller student. "Well, I'll be going now. Sorry for the trouble again, Miss Kim!"
She ran to catch up with Cohen who was already taking turn on the hallway and the treasurer's scolding to the vice-president could be heard.
The taller lowerclassman gaped at the door and slowly he sat up. "I. . .I think I'm in love."
The doctor and the other student frowned.
●
"Go clean the hallway of the main building."
"What?!"
"I said what I said, Maschenny," Orland stated with a firm voice. "Besides this isn't your first time cleaning the campus hallways with delinquents."
"But I have volleyball practice later!" she exclaimed, opposing the chairman who just deadpanned at her.
Having to look out for her for years, he felt himself growing older than his actual age because of her. But what could he do? He promised to take care of her or he would be killed by Maschenny's father in his sleep.
"No buts, I'll just have Cohen excuse you for your practice and voila." He cunningly smiled at her and the vice-president growled at him while the treasurer raised a brow at him.
"Why me?" questioned Cohen.
"Why not you?" replied the chairman.
"Ugh. . .fine," said the boy in reluctance.
In the end, Maschenny obeyed him, well of course she would since Orland promised to give her money after. When the classes were finally over, Maschenny and some other students on duty started cleaning the hallway. It wasn't really a hard work, she was just lazy and she really do have volleyball practice to get even bettef since the Volleyball National Spring Tournament was coming in three months.
She stopped midway, loosening her hold onto the mop as they just finished cleaning a hallway. She breathed, swiped her hair and the thin sheet of sweat from her face before looking out of the window. Her eyes darted at the almost indigo sky and felt a slight sudden dizziness.
'I really shouldn't have stayed up until 1 am binging Dr. STONE again. . .'
"Maschenny, c'mon, get back to work!" One of the students cleaning with her shouted.
She made a face. "Is that really how you talk with your vice-president?!" she shouted back before resuming mopping the floor, spotless.
'I'll get the money from the old man and buy a gallon of ice cream later. . .gah! I still have my shift at BeanBucks! Aaaah, I'll just buy a popsicle on the way home!'
●
When Maschenny and her fellow students finally finished their work, she immediately went out of her school, knowing that their volleyball practice had already ended, she didn't bother going and made her way to the direction of the café she was working at. Idly walking on the way to the café, watching the cars passing by and other students on their way home. Soon, she was alone on the street and decided to take her phone out to play some songs.
However, when she was just about to play 'Stay Gold by BTS', a figure mostly of white and silver, came falling down to her from above, yelling, "Human, get out of the way!"