"Goodbye, Rowan," smiled Maeve.

"Cya Maeve," Rowan said. They walked their separate ways. Today was just a normal day—nothing out of the ordinary. Rowan didn't get much sleep, but he was still up and ready for school.

The walk to the train was normal, and the overcrowding was normal as well. Not finding a seat on the train was also normal. Stepping off the train onto the sticky platform and walking up the steps into the breezy, cloudy sky was also normal. He held his phone in his hand, listening to music as he followed the crowd of kids walking to school. One by one, they entered the school grounds. Another long day of school was underway, and everything was as normal as it could get.

"Earth to Rowan?" asked a student next to him. "You alright?"

Rowan looked at him, then looked around. The kid has never spoken to Rowan once, and here he is asking him a question. Everyone was busy doing their own thing. There was a substitute teacher for 3rd period. Many girls crowded around one girl as gossiping turned to shouts. The random boy asking Rowan a question still looked at him. He tilted his head in confusion as Rowan just kept looking at him in a weird way.

"Are you alright?" he asked again.

"Yes," Rowan responded. "Who are you again?"

"Asshole," the boy said. He turned around, looking at another kid, and started having a conversation.

Rowan wasn't trying to be mean to the boy, but he actually didn't know who he was. It was like his mind was deleting memories. Or at least, it was what he thought was happening. He was also second-guessing himself. Sitting at his desk, completely isolated from everyone, all that could be heard was the laughter and shouting of the rest of the students in the class.

"Have you guys heard what happened to Mr. Kasper?" asked a girl standing by the door.

Rowan didn't want to hear their idiotic conversation. He put his head down, as the substitute teacher didn't care about what was happening within the class. Today was a normal day, and he wanted it to stay normal. He had something to do in the afternoon, and he wanted to get it over with as quickly as possible. A last-minute therapy session.

"You mean how he's wanted?" laughed another girl. "That scrawny weirdo won't make it that far."

"What?" asked another girl sitting at her desk. "Mr. Kasper's wanted? He's got an ability?"

"Yep," the initial girl said.

Rowan looked up, darting his eyes to the right, where the girls were all hanging around. He never spoke to them, let alone anyone in his class. He wasn't some sort of edgy boy. He just didn't have the best social skills. It became worse after the incident, and his therapy sessions were supposed to help fix this, along with the other issues.

"Does anyone even like Mr. Kasper?" asked a boy who wandered into the conversation.

"Don't know," sighed the girl sitting at her desk.

Rowan looked up and stared at the front of the class. His eyes then diverted to the clock, which was then led by the bell ringing. The rumbling of desks and bags moving was a bigger indication of "you've gotta get the hell out of class." Rowan made his way to his 4th period class, then to lunch. After that were his 6th and 7th, and finally the last class of the day. This was Mr. Kasper's class, but instead of a substitute teacher, there were two S.E.S.D. members. One was sitting on his desk, playing with Mr. Kasper's Newton Cradle. The other was fixing his hair and sitting on Mr. Kasper's prized chair, which he won at a contest. Mr. Kasper gloated that chair to everyone. It was also the first time he got Rowan to laugh out loud, which had surprised a few students.

Rowan walked in and sat down, as did everyone else around him. The S.E.S.D. member with blonde hair and goggles who had been playing with the Newton Cradle looked up from it. He counted the chairs and stated if anyone sat in the empty chairs. A girl with brown hair and gray eyes gave the boy a list of the students who decided to skip, along with those who were sick. Rowan sat there quietly as the class darted their eyes at her.

"Well, we'll get started," said the boy sitting in Mr. Kasper's chair. His feet resting on Mr. Kasper's desk. "Some of you already know why we're here."

"It's protocol," said the blond-haired boy.

"Don't interrupt me," the boy in the chair said.

The class was completely quiet. Everyone sat there, not moving a muscle. It was as if someone were holding a knife to their neck.

"As a precaution, we're usually sent to investigate," said the blonde boy.

"I said don't interrupt me," said the boy in the chair.

Rowan looked at the two S.E.S.D. members wearing all black with a skull on their right shoulder sleeve. The skull indicates that they're part of the Execution Brigade. Some of the executioners have amazing abilities that are some of the deadliest in regards to fighting. Most of the executioners, however, are young. This is because the older you become and the stronger you become with your ability, the more opportunities within the S.E.S.D. that open up. Most people think that the executioners are the SWAT team equivalent. But this is wrong. Rowan did a ton of research on the executioners. He knows that there are five squads within his state's S.E.S.D. sector. Each of them are talented in their own way. Each of them has their own tasks. Each squad is scarier than the other.

The two executioners at the front of the class looked around the room.

"I'm Field Agent Bosco, and he's Sergeant Tipton," said the blond executioner. "Your teacher, Mr. Kasper, is a wanted ability user."

A few students gasped since they didn't understand what was happening. A small gossip session broke out as the blond executioner, Bosco, became irritated. His voice squeaked and shrieked before his face turned red from embarrassment. Half of the class burst out laughing while the others sat there confused and annoyed. The boy behind him, Tipton, was already annoyed himself. He stood up and revealed his tall body structure. Putting his hands together, he clapped, which made the whole class silent. Everyone was forcibly paralyzed. Not even a twitch of a body part. Sergeant Tipton looked at the students before he released his hands. Once that happened, everyone could finally move again.

Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

"What the hell was that?" screamed a girl who sat close to the front. "You're crazy."

Rowan was still stunned, not by force but by his own will. He had never felt this before in his life. He's only ever witnessed an ability being used on other people.

"All we want is to get answers from you guys," Tipton asked. "Any questions?"

Two people raised their hands. One was a blonde girl with big round glasses, and the other was a Hispanic boy with long black hair. Tipton chose the Hispanic kid first. His name was Leo, and he was the first to raise his hand.

"Why are your names Tipton and Bosco?" asked Leo. "They're code names?"

"Correct," Tipton replied. "Of course, we cannot put our real names out there."

Tipton then pointed at the girl. Her name was Sandra, and she had a rough, scratchy voice.

"What's the point of you being here? Is it for suspicion? Or are you here to watch over us?" she asked.

"Great question," Tipton said. "To clear everything up, we're here for questioning and suspicion, all in all. We'll be asking you some questions, but that's it."

Each student was asked questions outside of the class. Only one executioner asked the questions, which was Tipton. Bosco was sitting on the desk, dangling his feet, while reading a book. Some of the girls came up to him to ask questions, but Bosco was not interested in them at all. Rowan was bored. Every time someone came back inside, they sat down, went on their phones, or continued with a conversation. The crowd of girls around Bosco and the loud amount of gossip that was happening in front of his face were irritating to both some of the boys and Bosco. Not mainly because he was attracting a lot of the girls to him, but because of how loud and annoying they were. This was especially aggravating for Rowan, given that he had just started reading a book as well.

Bosco got off the desk and landed in the middle of the crowd. Many of the girls were asking a ton of questions. Such as, what ability does he have? Or if he has a girlfriend, or where he is from. Since he looked as if he were near the same age as them, they asked what school he went to. More questions were asked, but Bosco brushed them away. Instead, he started walking around the room until he came across a desk. Rowan turned his head to see a short, pale, blue-eyed boy staring right at him. He put the book he was reading down on the desk, covering the words with his hands as he looked at Bosco.

"What?" asked Rowan.

"Nothing," Bosco replied.

Rowan gave a small shrug, then continued reading his book. He honestly didn't care or pay any attention, but their eyes were still all on him.

"What are you reading?" asked Bosco.

"None of your business," Rowan sighed. "People here can tell you. I don't like speaking to many people."

"Is that so?" Bosco replied.

Tipton opened the door and called out Rowan's name throughout the class. Rowan looked up at Bosco and pushed him away before walking away and toward the door. Tipton towered over him as the door closed, and the two spoke in the hallway.

"I see you and Bosco are being friendly," smiled Tipton. His voice was deep.

"I don't know the guy," Rowan replied.

Tipton's smile faded as he had a blank stare, but he started asking questions.

"First question," he asked. "Do you know, Mr. Kasper?"

"He's my teacher," Rowan replied.

"Has he said anything to you or to anyone about his abilities?" asked Tipton.

"No," replied Rowan.

"Does he have any family members that have shown any signs of using abilities?" asked Tipton.

"How the hell would I know that?" Rowan sighed.

Tipton sighed before continuing with the next few questions.

"Have you met Mr. Kasper before coming to this school?" asked Tipton.

"No," Rowan said.

"Has he shown signs of helping any resistance groups?" asked Tipton.

"I've never heard of such things," Rowan replied.

Tipton looked up at the remaining questions. He sighed and tapped Rowan on the shoulder so he could face him.

"Listen, man," Tipton said. "You've at least got to be interested in these questions. Just tell us what you know. Every student had something to say about Mr. Kasper. Whether he's a hidden pervert, a ped, a murderer in disguise. Just give us something."

"Lying is bad, my brother always said," Rowan smiled.

Rowan's long-lost brother, his second sibling, had gone missing a few months ago. Although they've been looking for him for a while, the police have no leads. The only evidence that Rowan has is a note he left stating his hatred for their mother. That was all—nothing more, nothing less.

Tipton ushered Rowan back into the class. Seeing as everyone was in the same position, Tipton grabbed Rowan and whispered in his ear.

"Has Bosco been staring at you lately?" he asked.

"What about it?" asked Rowan. "He's some kind of freak?"

"Just be careful," Tipton said.

Soon, the bell rang, which concluded the day for everyone. Rowan walked out of the school and was already being hawked down by Hanna. She had a blue ribbon in her hair and was fully bundled up with a scarf and a winter coat. Her voice was muffled, but Rowan could hear a partial amount of words that came out of her mouth. The two walked to the subway, where Hanna once again waved goodbye and stood on the platform as Rowan's train left. In his mind, even though part of the day wasn't normal, he still repeated over and over again in his mind that it was.

As he left the station, his phone started buzzing. A text message from his therapist asking him to arrive thirty minutes from now was enlarged on his lock screen. He rushed home and up the stairs. Opening his apartment door before getting a rush of different fragrances all in his nostril.

"What is that?" he asked.

"Me and grandma are trying out perfumes," replied Maeve. "Are you leaving soon?"

"Actually, in a few minutes," he said. "I just came to check on you guys and put my stuff down."

"I can't come today, right?" Maeve pouted.

"Some other time," Rowan smiled. "I promise."

His phone buzzed again, giving him a few minutes' reminder to leave. He dropped his bag on the ground, grabbed a slice of bread, and walked back out of his apartment and down the stairs. Opening the main door and standing in the cloudy, freezing Boston weather, Rowan exhaled before starting his journey to see his therapist.

Eating the sliced whole wheat bread and continuing onward, the walk was quiet. The only issue Rowan was having was the feeling of being stalked and stared at from afar. It caused him to suddenly look back a couple of times, as well as causing him to suddenly get goosebumps. He started walking faster, as no one was on the road or walking on the sidewalk at the time. This wasn't a rare occurrence, though. Rarely would you see people walk unless it was toward the evening.

As he continued walking, he kept his head on a swivel. It wasn't until he finally entered the therapist building that he calmly let out a sigh of relief.

"Are you alright?" asked the receptionist.

"Me?" Rowan asked. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine."

The receptionist gave out a very cheerful smile. She knew why he was here and ushered him toward the room again. Rowan thanked her as he waited outside the door for a few minutes, since it hadn't actually been thirty minutes. He also didn't want to try and open a locked door, especially if she was in the middle of helping a client.

"Ah," said the receptionist. She had just come back to bring something to Rowan, a forum, so he could fill it out. "The door is open," she giggled.

Rowan chuckled embarrassingly as he looked at the door and then back at the receptionist, who had already disappeared. He twisted the nob and opened the door, letting out another sigh. Closing the door behind him and turning back around to have a sword pricking him in the middle of his neck. Rowan was scared beyond belief. He didn't know if he should scream and call for help or quickly run out of the room.

"Who are you?" asked a fair-skinned girl with black hair. "What are you doing here?"