Kai, a 16-year-old orphan, had always been a good student. When he entered his highschool school, he aced his exams, scoring the highest in the entire school. But instead of admiration, his success brought suspicion.
_"Is that the guy who scored first in the exams?"_ a student whispered.
_"I guess, but he looks like a delinquent. You sure he didn't cheat?"_ another student replied skeptically.
Kai was often misunderstood because of his large, intimidating build. People judged him without knowing him, except for one person—Zinc. Zinc had been Kai's first friend since elementary school. Like Kai, Zinc was also an orphan.
_"I guess these people are scared of you, nerd,"_ Zinc said, turning toward Kai with a smirk.
_"You know, I'm used to it,"_ Kai replied, his eyes glued to his book, ignoring the gossip swirling around him.
Zinc sighed. _"Seriously, you should just clear up the misunderstanding."_
_"And let the bullies think I'm a pushover? They'd start harassing me in no time,"_ Kai countered.
Zinc cracked his knuckles, his smaller frame belying his impressive fighting skills. _"Well, I could just take care of that for you."_
Kai shook his head. _"Why start trouble when I can avoid it? My build is a gift—it lets me lead a quiet life in school without any hassles. Besides, you won't always be there to protect me."_
Zinc sighed dramatically. _"Man, I'm so jealous of your genes. If God had given me those, I'd conquer this school in a day."_
Kai rolled his eyes. _"You've said that at least a dozen times now."_
_"What can I say? Just get used to it."_
Just then, a girl entered the classroom. She was the student council vice president, and her entrance caused a stir.
_"Hey, look who it is—the student council vice president. I guess she heard the news too,"_ a random student muttered.
The vice president, Candice, glared at the class. _"Who is Kai in this class?"_ she demanded.
_"Why, you got a problem with him?"_ Zinc asked arrogantly.
Candice shot him a cold look. _"How about you watch that mouth of yours?"_
_"Isn't it basic manners to introduce yourself before talking to someone?"_ Zinc retorted.
_"Everyone in this class knows who I am,"_ Candice snapped back.
_"But we don't,"_ Zinc said, sarcasm dripping from his words.
Candice clicked her tongue in irritation. _"My name is Candice, and I'm the student council vice president of this school."_
_"I just asked for your name. Do I look like I give a fuck about your title?"_ Zinc shot back.
A councilman, one of Candice's lackeys, stepped forward, anger flashing in his eyes. _"Hey kid, how about I fix that mouth of yours?"_
Zinc immediately took a karate stance. _"Bring it on, big guy."_
_"Enough!"_ Kai stepped between them, his calm composure immediately intimidating the councilman. _"I'm Kai. Could you forgive my friend?"_
The councilman hesitated, then backed away. _"Don't talk back to our vice president again,"_ he muttered.
_"Get back here, Shade,"_ Candice ordered, as the councilman returned to her side. _"We just wanted to have a chat with Kai."_
_"What's the reason for your visit?"_ Kai asked coolly.
Candice crossed her arms. _"We received a report that you cheated on the exam to get the top score."_
Zinc scoffed. _"Got any proof, spoiled princess?"_
Candice's eyes narrowed. _"Huh? Do you have a death wish, brat?"_
_"You sure you can take me?"_ Zinc challenged.
_"Stop,"_ Kai intervened, turning to Zinc. _"Don't make this problem any bigger. How can I prove I didn't cheat on the exams?"_
Shade sneered. _"Nice confidence, chap, but we know you cheated in the—"_
_"Shut up,"_ Candice cut him off. _"You think you want to prove your innocence? Then how about this?"_ She grabbed a marker and scribbled a complex math problem on the board. _"Solve this."_
A random student muttered, _"Isn't that question out of the syllabus?"_
_"Yes, it is,"_ Candice replied with a smirk. _"But it wouldn't be a problem for a topper like you, right?"_ She looked at Kai expectantly.
Kai stared back at her, his gaze cold and unflinching. He picked up the marker. _"Actually, your question has a minor mistake."_
He added a mathematical sign and turned back to her. _"Now it's perfect to answer."_
Candice flushed, trying to cover her embarrassment. _"I guess the ink gave up, or I didn't press hard enough,"_ she mumbled.
_"Yeah, nice try, bitch,"_ Zinc muttered under his breath.
_"This is your last warning—"_ Candice began, but she was cut off by a student's exclamation.
_"He's solving the question!"_
All eyes turned to the board. Within a minute, Kai had solved the problem effortlessly.
_"Is this enough?"_ Kai asked, his voice steady.
Shade stared at the board in disbelief. _"I can't believe it. He solved a 22-mark question without any rough work in less than a minute."_
Candice looked flustered. _"We're sorry for not trusting you. I guess we got the wrong report."_
Kai nodded. _"I understand."_
Candice turned to leave. _"Thank you for understanding,"_ she said, walking out of the classroom.
_"Oi, where do you think you're going?"_ Zinc called after her. _"I wrote an out-of-syllabus question for you on the board. Care to correct it?"_
Everyone turned to look at the board. Scrawled in bold letters was the phrase, "FCKU BTHIC."
Candice glared at Zinc, her eyes full of fury. She stormed out of the classroom, Shade shooting Zinc a murderous look as he followed her.
Zinc smirked. _"I guess that girl is smart. She solved the question in less than a second."_
Kai sighed. _"You know, you should learn to respect women."_
_"I respect women, not bitches like her,"_ Zinc replied with a grin.
_"Sometimes I wonder how I ended up friends with you,"_ Kai said, annoyed.
_"Same goes for me,"_ Zinc shot back with a smile.
_"Troublemaker,"_ Kai muttered under his breath.
_"I heard you, nerd,"_ Zinc replied.
_"Whatever. I'm going out to get some fresh air. Are you coming?"_ Kai asked.
_"If you buy me a vanilla shake, I might consider it,"_ Zinc said, teasingly.
_"Bitch, you think I'm begging you?"_ Kai retorted, annoyed.
_"Chill, bro. If you're not buying, I'll get it…with your money, of course,"_ Zinc said, pulling out Kai's wallet.
Kai checked his pockets, surprised. _"When did you take that?"_
_"Bitch, I'm the stealth king,"_ Zinc replied with a grin, walking out towards the canteen.
Kai followed, his irritation simmering, but he didn't shout. He didn't want the other students to think they were friendly. He liked being alone.
After buying the milkshake, Kai scolded Zinc about the wallet. Their conversation was interrupted by a girl.
_"Hi, nice to meet you. My name is Zara. I'm from the next class. I saw you solve that question on the board. You were really cool,"_ Zara said, smiling at Kai.
_"Why the heck are you introducing yourself?"_ Zinc asked bluntly.
_"I wanted to start a conversation. And I heard a handsome man say, 'You should introduce yourself before starting a conversation,'"_ Zara said, imitating Zinc.
Zinc smirked. _"You got me there, woman. Now what? Are you interested in me?"_
_"I'm not here for you. I'm here for him,"_ Zara said, pointing at Kai.
_"Me?"_ Kai asked, surprised.
Zara was a petite girl, about 5'4", with dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a beachy braid hairstyle. She had a baby-like face that made her look younger than she was.
_"Are you interested in him or something?"_ Zinc asked, his curiosity piqued.
Zara scoffed. _"Seriously? I'm not interested in guys lik—"_
_"Lesbian?"_ Zinc interrupted.
_"Let me finish my sentence, dumbass,"_ Zara shot back. _"I'm not interested in guys like you."_
_"What do you mean by 'guys like us'?"_ Zinc asked, annoyed.
_"I mean, I don't like being in a relationship with a scary-looking guy or a runt with a bitchy personality,"_ Zara explained.
_"Bitch, do you wanna die?"_ Zinc growled.
_"I heard if you kill someone, you'll be locked up for life. And they've changed the law—minors from age 10 to 13 can go to juvenile prison, but 14 and up? Straight to the big leagues,"_ Zara shot back, unphased.
Zinc smirked, leaning in closer. _"Don't worry, I won't kill you. I'll just make you a fucking vegetable."_
_"I'd like to see you try,"_ Zara challenged, standing her ground.
_"Oh, really?"_ Zinc's fists clenched, and he stood up, ready to throw down.
_"Am I fucking invisible here,"_ Kai muttered to himself before stepping between them. _"Sit down, Zinc. You're attracting everyone's attention."_
Kai glanced around, noticing that the entire canteen was staring at them. Zinc hesitated but eventually sat back down, still glaring at Zara.
Kai turned to Zara. _"So, do you have any actual problem with me?"_
Zara, slightly intimidated by Kai's calm yet imposing demeanor, took a deep breath to steady herself. _"Okay, I just wanted to be friends with you guys."_
Zinc eyed her suspiciously. _"You sure you don't wanna be friends just so you can rat us out to someone?"_
_"I have two reasons for wanting to be friends with you,"_ Zara said, her voice firm.
Kai raised an eyebrow. _"And what would those be?"_
_"First, I'm getting bullied by some girls in my class. If they know I'm friends with you, they'll back off. Second, I'm not great at studying, and I thought you could help me with that,"_ Zara admitted.
Kai glanced at Zinc, who shrugged. _"Is it just me, or does this feel like an interview?"_
_"It's just you,"_ Zara and Zinc said in unison.
The three of them exchanged glances and burst out laughing.
_"You've got some fight in you. No wonder they're bullying you,"_ Zinc teased, still chuckling.
_"Oh, shut up,"_ Zara said, but she couldn't help but laugh along with them.
Their laughter was interrupted by a girl and two guys who walked up behind them.
_"Are you Kai from Class 1?"_ the girl asked.
Zinc groaned. _"Now what? You wanna be our friend too?"_
Zara's eyes widened as she recognized the girl. _"Shut up! Do you know who she is?"_ she whispered urgently to Zinc.
Zinc shrugged, unimpressed. _"Student council president or something?"_
Zara shook her head. _"No, bigger than that. Her family sponsors a large amount of money for this school."_
_"So what? She's just another spoiled kid,"_ Zinc said dismissively.
Zara leaned in closer. _"It's not about that. Her father runs an organization."_
Zinc's expression changed to one of mild interest. _"Organization? Which one?"_
_"Skool,"_ Zara whispered.
Zinc's eyes widened in shock. _"Skool?!"_
Skool was the third most powerful organization in the country. Unlike typical companies, Skool trained delinquents, teaching them martial arts and assigning them real-world problem-solving tasks. It was essentially a school focused on martial arts rather than academics, hence the name "Skool." It was where the wannabe delinquents and the strongest fighters flocked to hone their skills.
The girl, sensing their curiosity, smiled and said, _"Hi, I'm Elisa. I'm here to have a chat with you, Kai. I've heard a lot about you and thought it would be nice to get to know you better."_
Kai raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised but not intimidated. _"Oh, really? What's this chat about?"_
Elisa shrugged lightly. _"Just wanted to introduce myself and see if we could be friends. I know it sounds a bit forward, but I thought it would be nice to start on a good note."_
Zinc and Zara exchanged glances but said nothing, letting Kai handle the situation.
_"Alright,"_ Kai said, nodding. _"Let's talk then."_
Elisa smiled warmly. _"Great! Let's find a place to sit and chat."_
The group moved to a quieter corner of the canteen, ready to engage in a conversation that might reveal more about the intriguing Elisa and her connection to Skool.
**"The Calm Within the Storm: Elisa's Intrigue and the Hidden Truths of Skool"**
As Kai and his friends navigate the tensions of their new school life, Elisa's unexpected approach hints at deeper connections to Skool that could alter their paths forever.
*TO BE CONTINUED IN CHAPTER TWO*