“...Alyss?”

Max raised his brows to its fullest extent, and his eyes widened at the appearance of a close female friend.

With fabric that showcased her lean figure, Alyss wore a light cream shirt with long sleeves, her jeans a darker tone, whilst a rucksack hung on her back. The girl also had her dark silky hair flow their strands around her neck, allowing her to portray a refreshed and somewhat mature look.

“What a surprise, nice seeing you here,” Alyss smiled, showing the glisten on her teeth.

“For sure,” Max agreed. Indeed, he’d been taken by surprise. But he was also quick to revert back to his original calm demeanor.

“Why’re you here? I thought you moved to Kenington for good.”

At that mention, Alyss turned her body as she looked for a vacant seat. Just right behind Max.

“Well...stuff happened I guess, dad’s done doing business with Kenington for the time being and said that it's time to move back again, so we did.”

“Aha,” Max merely nodded as if his inquiry had been satiated. But really, that wasn’t the case.

Max then felt a tug from his side, he turned and was suddenly met with Ben's suspicious eyes. Funnily enough, his brows were twitching.

“So uh, mind telling me what’s going on?” he coughed.

The small interaction between them caused Alyss to become aware of Ben’s presence. So she tilted her head in a slight angle.

“...And you are?”

Max timely raised his palm, moving them about as he tried to introduce them both.

“Ben, meet Alyss, she’s an...old friend. We used to hang out with each other when we were kids. Alyss, this is Ben, we just met.”

“Uh, hi,” Ben nodded weakly. Strangely enough, no trace of his earlier confidence was found in him. It's as if it had all been a lie to begin with.

"Hi Ben, nice to meet you," said Alyss. Different from how Ben had reacted, the girl beamed instead. Her eyes turned to crescent moons, causing her to receive no lack of admiration, and indeed, no lack of attention too when it happened. Especially from the members of the opposite sex in the classroom.

'These boys go from zero to deers caught in headlights real quick,' Max even mused.

Unfortunately, their convo had to be postponed, since the teacher for the first period had already arrived.

It wasn’t until the moment the lunch bell rang, that Max had figured it was the opportune moment to resume where they had left off. He signaled for both Alyss and Ben to go get lunch together.

When they arrived at the cafeteria, the place was packed and the trio had to waltz around a few times before finally finding an empty table. However, it wasn't an ideal spot. Since they’re a bit too close in distance with some jocks, who were an extremely rowdy bunch, but beggars can’t be choosers.

“By the way Alyss, since you came from Kenington, have you had the chance to see Starlet up close?”

Max said as he opened their discussion. He took a quick glance at Ben as he noted his shy demeanor.

It was a good coincidence, really, that Starlet had made her debut in Kenington. And as far as he knew, the city had been her turf ever since, along with a few others.

So figuring out that Ben had an invested interest in Starlet, and in hopes to let the boy not feel being left out, Max decided that mentioning Starlet might be a good way to undo his new friend’s silence yet also engage Alyss at the same time.

And just as he predicted―Ben’s eyes regained their light when he mentioned that name. Maybe he’d thought of that too, during the time Max mentioned that she’d come from Kenington earlier this morning.

“Ah yes, the vigilante,” Alyss smirked mysteriously all of a sudden. “I’ve met her.”

“You’ve met her?” Ben gasped. He almost jumped out of his seat as well. Max reckoned that if not for the fact that they were in a public setting, he might’ve as well also squealed.

“That’s so cool.”

“Wait, you actually did?” Max on the other hand, had surprise written all over his face. “You’re joking right?”

Though he was the one who asked the question in the first place. Max didn’t actually believe that Alyss had met Starlet.

“Looks like someone’s skeptical, a shame. It’s true that I’ve got no proof for that, so take it how you will. Though, I thought that I could entrust you guys with some...insider secrets, yet I suppose I have no choice but to keep it for myself,” Alyss pursed her lips as her playful eyes pricked Max’s consciousness.

“Well, I believe you Alyss,” said Ben abruptly. The suddenness of his voice broke the ongoing trance between Max and Alyss. The girl then shifted her eyes towards Ben and she gave out a hearty smile, flushing his cheeks.

“That’s nice of you, Ben, I’ll do it for your sake then,” she responded.

Ben nodded his head like an obedient duckling and Max sighed as he opted to shut his trap and focused more on his food instead.

Alyss then motioned to get closer. Ben obliged by stretching his neck while Max stayed put, but clearly, it was obvious that all attention was hers for the taking.

“I think that Starlet is much younger than people might think,” she finally said after a long pause.

“How so?” Ben inquired. “I saw the forums and thought that her age should be around 17 to 20 years old after studying multiple clips of her in action, and you say she’s much younger than that?”

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“Absolutely,” Alyss snorted in a sudden turn, she appeared to be...strangely displeased.

She then leaned back to her chair as she crossed her arms. “I met her a bit past midnight, when me and my dad were celebrating the new year’s eve months back.”

“Like usual, we would come to the commercial district, waiting for the crowds to gather. Things looked great. The fireworks were a lot of fun to watch, and soon after, the city began to light up in no time. I honestly had a good initial experience. Met many good folks along the way too, but as always, when there’s a large gathering, the bad apples tend to show up, party poopers, the lot of them. ”

Ben nodded in understanding. The boy was completely immersed in Alyss' narrative. It was no wonder, since even Max slowed his chewing without him even realizing it.

“And since people started drinking and all, there’s little doubt that things would get a bit out of hand, I lost track of my dad during all that chaos, and before I knew it, I got pulled up by a few drunk guys into a dark alley, they probably thought I was some easy chick.” Alyss shook her head and sighed.

“And then―”

“And then?”

“She came,” Alyss said.

Again, the girl stretched her silence, building up tension as Ben bit his lip. Max on the other hand, had already stopped eating and was tapping his finger on the table profusely.

Alyss blinked, and knowing when to strike while the iron was hot, she started to make descriptive gestures with her hands. “She came down out of nowhere, and smashed them down with ease.”

“But there’s just one thing that made me figure out the slight slip of her identity…her voice. You guys know that her speaking voice is somewhat unnatural right?”

Ben affirmed. “Yeah, my guess is that she’s using a modulator or something, since I heard from other testimonies that her tone was just so bizarre.”

Alyss continued. “Whatever the case, right after she beat those guys into a pulp, I noticed a crack as she spoke."

"A crack?"

This time it was Max that spoke up.

"Nervousness, I think," Alyss said. "Her breath was kind of...erratic."

"Right, that makes sense, her first big appearance was just a little over a week after New Year. I’d argue that that night must've been her first outing or something."

Ben snapped his fingers and Max nodded half-suspicious.

"Maybe, so anyway, when the crack happened, I heard this soft voice. That's when I realized that perhaps she's younger than what people assume her to be. I’d make the case that she’s around 2 years younger than current predictions, perhaps even more."

"That’s crazy, also, did you hear what she said?"

"It’s unclear, murmurs were all that I caught," Alyss raised her shoulders."Besides, I'm more focused on getting out in one piece, so there's that."

Max saw the tad bit of disappointment slipping through Ben’s face when Alyss finished, however it was overshadowed nonetheless by his enthusiasm.

Yet he would be abruptly shut down the moment he tried to ask more questions on the matter. And the cut came neither from Alyss, nor Max.

"That's interesting. But you know, you got lucky there. Cuz Miss 'twinkle little star' won’t be there the next time things get ugly. So I think that you need someone strong and reliable the next time you go to crowded places, someone like me.”

Apparently, the person that came up to them had been none other than one of the jocks that had been sitting on the table nearby.

The boy had broad shoulders and sported a short haircut. His smile was confident, but not necessarily arrogant.

Max wrinkled his brows, but just as he intended to speak up, he noticed Alyss curling up her lips whilst giving out a certain mischievous wink.

And that; was all the signal he needed. So he stayed in place and resumed eating, his lips curving up in the same manner, but scant in vision. A funny feeling crept up his gut, telling him that he was going to enjoy this.

Only Ben was panicking amongst the three. He sent obvious glances towards Max, but only sighed later when he realized that Max wouldn’t budge. Ultimately, he followed Max’s lead and ate in silence.

“And who might you be?” Alyss asked. Her tone was sweet like honey, and she casted a side glance towards the newcomer.

“Name’s Jameson Spavor, but you can call me James,” said the boy. “May I know your name, pretty girl?”

Immediately after asking, James sat down beside Alyss. He then looked back to where his mates were. They cheered at him, laughing, and fully intent to enjoy the show.

“I’m Alyss. Alright, you look tough big boy, so what’s your deal?”

“Well Alyss, for one, I got these bad boys right here,” James showcased his muscles from underneath his tight shirt, making them appear firmer. “Plus, I’m the best football player you got all sophomore year, you can’t get any better than that.”

At the same time, James swept a glace towards Max and Ben, he looked as if he was itching for victory. His expression dared them to challenge him. Unfortunately for him, both boys didn’t even bat an eye towards him, especially Max whose body also had a sturdy build. Seeing this, he could only give up for now and put all his attention towards Alyss.

“Ah, I see, that’s impressive,” Alyss raised her brows. Her expression showed a myriad of emotions. This made James even more pleased with himself as his smile turned more smug than confident.

“There's more where that came from, I wouldn't even mind providing you with something...extra."

At that comment, Ben seemed to have met his limit as he turned his face towards Max. Max, noting Ben's reaction, did the same thing.

Now seeing eye to eye, Ben furiously attempted once again to communicate with Max.

His lips moved, and though no sound was coming out of him, Max understood the message.

'What are we going to do?'

'...Just wait.'

'What do you mean wait? Alyss's in trouble right now!'

'She's not, just keep the act.'

'But―'

"Then, wanna hear my final thoughts?" Alyss asked suggestively.

"Bring'em on, girl." James smiled. He seemed so sure of himself.

"I say...thanks but no thanks big guy."

"...What?" James's smile slowly faded from his face.

"Frankly speaking, I think that there are better ways to get a girl, you just pushed the wrong buttons, sorry pal."

Not expecting such a response, the fluster in James' face started to show. "Wait, I―"

Alyss quickly stood up and passed him by. She then whispered. "Next time you try to hit on a girl, don’t go in blind, yeah?”

"..."

"C'mon boys, let's go. Class's about to start," leaving no time for James to recollect, Alyss concluded that it was time for them to bail out.

Max merely nodded and rose up, acting as if whatever happened in front of him didn't exist. Ben followed suit. Now, only James was left sitting at the table, flabbergasted by the situation.

"The new box office: How to reject a boy 101 starring yours truly. How'd you like the show gentlemen?" claimed the girl.

By the time she spoke up the trio had already long exited the cafeteria.

"That was epic," Ben grinned widely. He couldn't believe what just happened.

"Sarcasm on spot, just how I like them to be," Max chuckled.

Alyss giggled."Why thank you."

The uplifting mood then carried the trio throughout the day.