Not every situation had a way out.

As I looked at myself in the mirror, dressed in a suit that was too tight and smelling of a cologne that made my eyes burn, I wished that wasn’t the case. Birgit had insisted on me wearing all of this, but I winced at everything about me.

I moved around to make sure I looked as good as I could. Every part of my body ached with every move I made. I trained both by myself and with Amir. Combined with my sparring with Birgit and all the sleep I didn’t get, it was a wonder my eyes weren’t buried under dark circles.

“Well, well, well,” said Sadid, coming out of the bathroom. “You’re different. Did you shave?”

“Yeah.” I shaved my face, almost completely shaved my hair. This was the big day. The day Birgit told her parents she wouldn’t be a hero. All I had to do was endure a single dinner with them before she did so.

“Don’t forget my sister’s coming tomorrow morning. You’ll be alright?”

“Of course.” I put up the biggest smile I could through the mirror.

And before I knew it, it was time for me to go. Thankfully my cologne was drowned out by the smell of the sea and grass. People were scattered about, around bonfires and small groups, all of them doing things regular college students–but not heroes–were supposed to.

A few of them came closer to me.

One was an unnaturally tall and thin guy with a tank top and small tubes jutting out of his arms and back.

The other two were…unfortunately familiar. One was Azam, with his scales shimmering against the moonlight and the other was John with a gauntlet made of bone being formed around each of his arms.

Just as I stepped off the bridge and on the other side, they surrounded me. I put my hands in my pockets. Dressed in this suit while surrounded by people like them, I barely managed to suppress a smile.

“Going somewhere?” asked John while a disgusting smile overtook his and the lanky guy’s face.

They were standing close together. Azam didn’t seem to pay them any mind. If nothing else, he looked at them confused. So they weren’t together. He was standing directly in front of me. Smoke was coming out of his nose and mouth with every breath he took.

I felt like a hero in a show. Suave and well dressed, swatting my enemies away, saving the day, and dropping a hundred one liner per minute.

Even if I’d never done any of those things. Let alone all of them together.

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Still, maybe this could be my chance. I knew for a fact John was a classic bully that got off on beating up those weaker than him and the lanky guy seemed to be closer to him than Azam.

Leaving only him as someone I couldn’t take down. But to do anything I’d need to use my power. And, while I wasn’t as afraid of it anymore, I couldn’t risk causing any of them serious injuries.

And I also couldn’t risk causing too much damage.

“For all your faults,” I said to Azam, “I never thought you’d be standing next to bullies.”

“All my faults?” He was growling. “You don’t know me.”

“Right.” Γαμώ την τύχη μου. I forgot about that. We didn’t know each other. Focus, Alex. We’d only met once. I couldn’t bring forgotten history into this. “So why? Why all of this?”

“Because I know the truth about you, Moros.” He stepped close, way too close to me.

Every hair on my body stood on edge. I clenched my hands inside my pockets, doing my best to remain neutral–confident–to everyone that was looking at me.

“What do you mean?” There was no way he knew the truth. My eyes flicked left and right. To the two guys that were standing them.

He smirked.

“For the record, I’m not with them.” He was speaking lower now, really lower. “I can’t stand bullies.”

“Are you done?” said John. “We have a score to settle. Or are you too busy playing teacher to face us?”

“We have nothing to do with each other.” I spoke to him in Greek. “Now please do me a favour and leave. We can talk, or fight, or whatever you want, later.”

The top of the gauntlet extended down, like a sword. He raised his arm to attack, but before I had the chance to dodge, Azam’s hand was wrapped around it. I heard a crack and he drew his hand back, breaking it down to pieces.

A shrill sound was heard opposite to me. The tubes retreated into the other guy and his whole body was blown up. Another hit that Azam blocked before he headbutted the guy, sending him flying away.

John tried to get up, but a fire filled roar was all Azam had to do to send him away.

A few heads turned but they all went back to their business.

Leaving just me and Azam. On instinct, I took off my gloves. He growled.

“Birgit and I have a relationship you cannot understand. She excelled. She was happy. And then you came along and ruined it.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

All of the sudden, my every insecurity was back on the table. What if she had been happy? Better off without me. No. No. This was all left back in the first semester. It was like I’d told Maria: No more wallowing in self-pity.

“Oh, but I do. People like us, with power over the elements, are different. We connect differently. And we did connect. All of us in the higher mansions. Until one day she left. And we splintered, like dominoes falling one after the other. She left because of you. And because of that, I lost everything I had.”

Birgit was waiting for me. And so were her parents. So I didn’t have time to talk to him, no matter how much all of my instincts told me to do so, instead of fighting. It was ironic that he was the first person I felt like that towards.

So I crouched. The parts of his body that weren’t covered in scales started glowing.

And we rushed at each other.