Do I really have to pretend to be a bully?
I mean, I know that it's a very important mission and all, but seriously? My fellow classmates already see me as a bully after I beat up Gavin Degrassi. If I go down this road, I'm almost certain that I'll be the bad guy in their eyes for the rest of the school year.
"You got a better plan?" Anthony's voice echoed in my ear as I offered Darren a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "You good, Darren?"
"Phew! Yeah... I'm fine," Darren responded, and a nervous smile appeared on his lips, letting out a relieved sigh that he hadn't been beaten up by Rafael. "Thanks, man," he added, shifting his gaze to me."You saved my ass back there."
"Anytime, bro," I reassured him with another pat on the shoulder. "You're my friend. Can't let those guys mess with my friends like that."
Taking a seat beside Darren, I scanned the classroom. Most of my classmates, who had been so fearful of me, seemed to have eased up a bit. It appeared that my impromptu intervention had a positive impact on their perception, showing them I stood up for my friend.
Whew! I can't believe that actually worked. I just improvised that dialogue on the spot.
Of course, my anger and attack on Rafael were genuine. However, I did tweak my words and demeanor to present myself more like a student defending his peers, rather than coming across as a bully asserting his dominance.
It's important to make that distinction clear; otherwise, my classmates could become even more fearful of me.
But now that I've managed to restore some trust among my peers, the real question remains: How the heck do I handle the Trilokas situation?
"You assface!" Anthony's furious face suddenly appeared in my mind, his eyes blazing red as he yelled at me. "I specifically told you to cozy up to the bullies, and what do you do? Punch one of them in the face?! What the hell's the matter with you, motherfucker?"
Yeah, yeah, calm down alright. Yes, I did throw a punch at Rafael, but that doesn't mean I can't try and befriend the other Trilokas members.
"Oh yeah? Hey, here's a thought? What if Rafael was actually real tight with the top rankers in Trilokas, hm?" Imaginary Anthony interjected with raised eyebrows. "You honestly think they'll be getting close to a guy who beat up their friend?"
Well…
Uh… Um, you know what-
"Ha! You didn't think that far ahead, did you, you son of a btich?!" Imaginary Anthony's voice echoed in my mind, seething with anger. "Ugh! You had one task! One job, and you just went ahead and fucked it up!"
Lo- Look, that was just a what-if scenario, alright? I mean, who's to say he even knows the top dogs in Trilokas?
"You better hope to god that you're right, motherfucker!" Imaginary Anthony sighed in exasperation. "Honestly, what the hell is wrong with you? Did your mama drop you when you were a little baby or something?"
Bitch, why're you dissing me? Aren't you, like part of my imagination, man? Can't you be a bit more supportive?
"Teehee! You're right! You can do it, Felix! Fighting!" Imaginary Anthony chimed in with an anime girl voice. "What do you think, huh?"
...Yeah, let's just stick to you shitting on me, please.
"Yeah, that's what I thought, motherfucker!" Imaginary Anthony replied with a nod.
-------------------------
"I apologize," I exclaimed loudly and bowed my head in front of Principal Giodarno, who wore a frustrated expression as he massaged his forehead.
"I vouched for you one time because of your father, and you take it as a license to go wild.." Principal Giodarno let out a long sigh, his voice holding a hint of exasperation. I bowed my head once again, offering my apology for a second time. "I'm genuinely ashamed of my actions, sir."
After a string of apologies and enduring a lengthy, boring lecture from the Principal, I was finally dismissed from the room.
"Phew..." I sighed with relief as I stepped out of the Principal's office. "Can't believe I have to go through that long lecture every time I beat up someone."
"That's why I told you to get friendly with the bullies, not to beat them up!" Imaginary Anthony's voice boomed in my mind, and I responded with an eye roll.
"Well, at least I'm not getting expelled," I said as I stretched my hands up into the air and let out a yawn. "But man, did that talk with the Principal make me sleepy.."
"Hey! Don't ignore me!" Imaginary Anthony screamed in anger as I continued walking towards the classroom, when suddenly..
Ring! Ring!
My phone's sudden ring grabbed my attention, and I took it out from my pocket. Glancing at the screen, I noticed that the call was from an unknown number. Intrigued, I swiped to answer and then raised the phone to my ear. "Hello?" I responded cautiously.
"Is this Felix Wilczek?" The voice on the other side queried, and I furrowed my eyebrows even more. The caller on the other side seemed to be using a voice modulator and was altering his or her voice.
This could be a potential scam or a hack. Which means the best reply would be..
"....No?" I responded, met with silence on the other end. ".... Okay, my bad. Sorry about that." The voice on the other end finally responded after a brief pause before ending the call abruptly, leaving me perplexed as I stared at the phone's screen.
Weird…
Just as I was resuming my steps, my phone rang once again.
Ring! Ring!
I checked the display, and furrowed my eyebrows once again. Same number.
Click!
I answered the phone and brought it to my ear for a second time. "What?" I asked.
"Hey, you lied!" The caller's voice burst out immediately, their tone shifting from menacing to exasperated. "I checked the caller ID, and it literally says 'Felix Wilczek.' Seriously, like what the heck, dude?"
And now they're sounding a lot more like a teenager…
"Okay, who the hell is this?" My patience wore thin, annoyance evident in my voice as I said, "What do you want from me? Are you a prank caller or something? Because I'm going to hang up right now if you don't explain."
"Wa- wait, wait wait! Don't hang up! Don't hang up!" The voice on the other end sounded increasingly desperate, its tone shifting from assertive to almost pleading. "I swear, I'm not pulling a prank! Just give me a moment, okay? Please, just don't hang up!"
"Alright, alright! Geez, you don't have to yell, man.." I rolled my eyes at the theatrics of the voice modulator guy, who was breathing in and out, seemingly preparing for some kind of grand entrance.
"Phew! Okay, here we go.. showtime!" The caller muttered, and after a brief pause, their voice returned, "Alright! Felix Wilczek.." They spoke, their voice now having changed back to menacing.
I narrowed my eyes, my expression turning serious as I asked, "Yeah?"
"I know what you did." The caller's creepy, hoarse, modulated voice echoed in my ears, and I raised my eyebrows, after which I replied, "Well… I know what you did, how about that?"
"Wha- Man, what the fuck you talking about? You don't even know me!" The voice responded, sounding both confused and frustrated at the same time.
"I-I honestly have no clue why I said that either, dude," I replied while shaking my head, confused at what I just said. "It's like the first thing that came to my mind, and I just said that, without thinking twice. Yeah, you see I have this prob-"
"Oh my-I don't fucking care!" The voice on the other end shouted, interrupting my words, before continuing, "You listen to me! I know that you're a vampire!"