The piercing shriek from Brandon in the living room was enough to send shivers down anyone's spine.

Everything that has happened with Eva up to now hinted that something like this was coming sooner or later.

“Damm... that’s some psycho screaming there,” I thought.

With my plate of food in hand, I left the empty kitchen and made my way back to the serene guesthouse, the moon casting a soft glow on the path.

I sat in the living room, putting my plate on the table. I picked up the CAD I had left on top of the table to see if anyone had called, and there were two messages on the display.

“It looks like I got a message from Eva, and I don’t recognize the number on the second one,” I said.

I opened Eva’s message: “Babe, I just had a big talk with my dad, and things are tense. Also, I’m about to break things off completely with Brandon, so just be careful. I’ll see you in school tomorrow. Bye.”

I get that it explains in detail the scene from the kitchen just a little while ago.

“Got it. I’ll see you tomorrow,” I messaged her.

“I wonder who the other message is from? Let me open it and see what it says.”

I opened the message, “Master Prime, cleanup is complete. I hope this proves how sincerely sorry I am about what happened. If you have anything else, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Oh, so this is Damian’s number,” I mumbled.

“Damian, please meet me tomorrow at 6 p.m. outside Elite High School. I have something to discuss with you,” I messaged him back.

I just finished sending Damian the message when a third message popped up.

This one was from Roy.

“Khyrum, I talked to Mr. Jozz here, and he assured me that this little incident will not go unresolved. Also, I just finished setting up your account at Alliance Bank. I’ve deposited 200 million gold credits in it. So, you should be able to use it starting tomorrow. Here is your account number: XXXX-XXXX-8438.”

“A week before the auction, I’ll send a transport for you. That way, there is no issue, as it is bound to get hectic here if we wait until the last minute. If anything else happens, let me know ASAP.”

That was quick. I didn’t expect Roy to have done all this in the short time since we talked—it hasn’t been even two hours.

“That was freaking quick, Roy; thanks,” I messaged him back.

Tomorrow would be Wednesday, the middle of the week. I had so many things to do, but I would take my time as not to screw anything up.

With that, I put my CAD down and went to meditate in my room for a while.

I wanted to check out my skills, as I was surprised by what I displayed earlier today in the fight. I was particularly impressed by the Heal skill and Blade Storm.

“Fuck, that Heal skill is a beast. It basically negates most, if not all, the damage if my opponent is of a low rank. I’m stunned that it has a passive effect on self-healing. That’s freaking badass.”

I tried looking into Blade Storm, but I couldn't find it.

“This is weird. I can see my Heal skill and the other three, but I cannot see Blade Storm. I wonder why that is; I guess I might need to investigate this more seriously. That skill is my trump card in worst-case situations, and it would suck if I didn’t know how to use it,” I said, troubled.

After spending an hour or so on self-meditation, I finally went to bed. The next day, I woke up the same as usual. I took a shower, dressed, and went to the main kitchen to pick up my usual breakfast plate.

After finishing my food, I walked back to school as always. The morning passed by without a hitch. I wasn’t in the same class as any of the girls or Brandon, so it was much quieter now. The only person that I recognized in my new class was Nox.

We weren’t close, and ever since I rejected his invitation to the first-year strike team, I think he took offense and now only glances at me occasionally. Like I care what he thinks, I don’t think so.

The morning passed without any drama, one of the few I’ve had over the last weeks. During lunch, I was walking to my regular resting spot, The Library, when I spotted Yara waiting outside the front door.

Something told me she was waiting for me, but I still played it like I was unaware she was there.

I continued walking to the library, and she cut off my path as soon as she spotted me.

“Khyrum, we need to talk,” she said commandingly.

“Do we?” I asked, looking at her.

“Yes, we do,” she said.

“Cora wants to talk to you; she is waiting for you back in Battleground 1,” she continued.

I knew where this was going to lead, and I didn’t need that right now. I had more than enough drama already.

“Look, please understand that this is new to me, so I don’t know how it will go, but I’m willing to try. I’m sorry I couldn’t respond to Cora like she wanted, but the heart wants what the heart wants,” I said stone-faced.

“I’m sorry, but I will not go,” I said as I walked past her and into the library.

I could see Yara’s face contorted in anger and disbelief. She wanted to say something, but I was already inside the building when she turned around to argue.

She didn’t follow me because she knew trying to continue this inside the library was useless.

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The rest of the day went by without any drama. I still had to take the training class, which was the day's last class. Brandon, Eva, and the twins were in it, so I wanted to avoid unnecessary confrontations.

I went in, changed into my battle uniform, and went to the field. As soon as I arrived, I saw Brandon chasing Eva like a lost pup. He desperately tried to interact with her, but she kept moving away from him. She ended up going into a group of all-female trainees.

I also spotted Cora and Yara in the same vicinity as Brandon and Eva. I’m pretty sure they were waiting for me to show up, as they figured I would end up in the same group Eva was in.

Seeing this, I made my way to the opposite end.

“I just need to get past today, and things should calm down some,” I thought.

Class started, and our trainer, Mr. Warnick, gave us the battle instructions. We were doing hand-to-hand techniques today, so I quickly chose one of the guys closest to me.

We started our hand-to-hand training, and everything was going well. Suddenly, I felt like some vicious predators had stalked me.

“Why do I feel like someone is putting a voodoo curse on me?” I said as I turned around and spotted Cora and Yara about 5 feet behind me.

Shit, the gleam on both their eyes seemed murderous, to say the least. I quickly turned back around and proceeded to try and move further away.

“It's not going to work, Khyrum,” said Yara in a cold voice.

“You're destined to be with Cora, and nothing will change that,” she continued.

“Yes,” said Cora.

“I was too passive before and lost the battle to that tramp, Eva, but I’m not giving up, Khyrum. You will realize that she is not meant for you, and when it does not work out, I will be there to tell you so,” she said firmly.

Suddenly, another voice interrupted the crosstalk.

“Who the hell are you calling tramp, and what makes you think this won't work?” said Eva, upset.

The caterwauling was ramping up, and this is what I wanted to avoid specifically.

All three girls started going at it, and a crowd began to form around them.

“We are calling you a slut not a tramp,” continued Yara before being interrupted by Eva.

“You and your sister are the whores as you are chasing after a taken man,” said Eva raising her voice.

“Taken? Huh, we’ll see about that, " Yara said as she started looking for me.

“Khyrum, you chicken shit, where did you go?” she screamed, but I was long gone.

I took off as soon as I saw the ruckus developing. It was almost time to end the class anyway, so leaving a few minutes early wasn’t going to affect me in the least.

In all of this, Brandon was eyeing the girls and their fight from about 15 feet away.

“Again, this freaking asshole is taking what rightfully belongs to me,” he said, veins bulging from his neck.

“I guess I need to talk to Mother and make those guys move faster,” he grinned viciously.

I waited a little while to ensure everyone had left the battleground. After changing, I walked to the front door of the training building and peeked outside. I quickly realized that Cora and Yara were waiting just outside the doors.

“It’s a good thing I messaged Eva to go to the abandoned training grounds first; if not, I could see another fight starting here, too,” I said as I turned back around and walked back into the building.

I went through the back door and took a discreet route back to the abandoned training grounds. I felt somewhat bad leaving the twins like that, but I could not do much. I had never been good with feelings and such, so I thought if we had a clean break, it would be better for everyone.

When I arrived at the training ground, I spotted Eva waiting for me in the bleacher section.

“Honey!” she said as she got up and hugged me.

“Hi,” I could only say as I was still unfamiliar with all these lovey-dovey situations.

“Hi? Is all you have for me?” she said, pouting.

I looked at her with big Ol puppy eyes, just like when a pet does something wrong and tries to get away with it. I saw her face light up with a coy smile.

“You look so cute that I just want to tease you when you look at me like that,” she said, grinning.

She walked up to me and gave me a small kiss.

“Why did you leave me alone with those witches,” she said, pouting again.

I looked at her with some tenderness in my eyes.

“I couldn’t say much to them, to begin with. I’ve known them for a while and wouldn’t have gotten anywhere. I might have made it worse if I had talked,” I said as I grabbed her by the waist.

“Also, I did not want to put you on the spot any more than you were. Brandon was just a few meters back. I can’t imagine the tantrum he would have thrown if he found out that we were a couple. Like I said before, we need to keep this hidden until after I awaken,” I said, bringing her close.

I could smell her perfume and feel her shiver whenever I squeezed her tight.

“I know, but I still hate that we can’t act normal,” she said shyly, nestling her head in my chest.

She then looked, and we stared into each other's eyes for a few seconds before kissing again.

After a good long kiss, we separated.

“Eva, I need to tell you something,” I said semi-seriously.

Eva looked at me with a questioning look.

“Is something wrong, Babe?”

“Nothing with us, but I have an issue with Brandon and his mom,” I followed up.

Eva looked at me with a more serious look now.

“Is it about me?”

“No, not entirely. It’s been brewing now for a while, but it came to a head just yesterday,” I said.

“Do I need to get my family involved,” she said with a worried look.

“No, and that wouldn’t do us any good knowing how your dad feels about Brandon.”

“I already have a solution, but it's going to take me a little bit to implement it, so I just wanted to let you know that I might not be available for the next few days.”

“Don’t worry, and for sure, don’t come looking for me at the Richie Estate, as part of the solution is me moving out.”

“OH, so you’re moving out of the Richie Estate,” she said, surprised.

“Yes, probably this weekend, but I still need to figure a few things out.”

“Ok, I won't get worried then, but tell me, as soon as you’re in your new home, I want to visit you,” she said, blushing.

“Why is she turning red? Is it hot in here, or could she be getting sick?” I thought.

“Take good care of yourself while I’m not around, and be careful of Brandon; he is getting more psycho as time goes by,” I told her.

“I know he chased me all this morning and then in the training ground; if it had not been for some of the teachers, he would probably still be nagging me now. I’m hoping he gets it sooner than later,” she said, agitated.

I looked at her and felt a twinge of anger. For some reason, I felt I needed to protect her.

“Be careful and try to stay where there are people around. If it really gets bad, don’t hesitate to call me; ok, beautiful?” I said, kissing her on the forehead.

“Did you just call me beautiful?” she said, grinning from ear to ear.

After thinking about it for a bit, “I guess I did,” I said.

Eva proceeded to hug me even tighter, and she planted another kiss on my lips.

After discussing what would happen in the next few days and what to expect, it was already closer to 6 pm.

“I need to go, Eva, but I’ll keep in contact once I settle my situation,” I told her.

“Ok, just be careful, and if you need me, just message me, and I’ll do my best to help you, ok?” she said.

I nodded in approval, and we proceeded to leave the abandoned building. I looked around to ensure no one was around, and the area seemed clear. Eva exited the building and continued to walk towards the main campus.

On the other hand, I left the building and walked towards the front gate. It was almost 6, and Damian was supposed to pick me up.

As I walked down the pathway, not too far from the entrance of the abandoned training building, two pairs of eyes hid behind one of the big trees.

“I told you he was in there, Cora. I did not expect Eva to be in there with him, though,” said Yara, thinking.

Cora only saw Khyrum walk away with a glint of determination in her eyes.

Yara was still thinking when her face turned decadent.

“What do you think they were doing there for this long, Cora?” said Yara with a devilish grin.

“Do you think maybe they were hooking up? Maybe some action, action we want action kind of thing?” said Yara, using hand signals to accentuate the narrative.

Suddenly, a feminine fist landed on her head, “Ouch, why did you do that?” said Yara, grabbing her head as she looked at Cora.

“Why do you always go to the dirtiest places so fast?” said Cora with an indignant stare.

I had just arrived at the front gate when I spotted Damain sitting inside a custom vehicle outside.

I walked up to him.

“Nice ride, Damian.”

“Yeah, Prime, get in so we can go,” he gestured.

I got into the front passenger seat of the vehicle.

“Alright, Prime, where are we going now?” said Damian, looking at Khyrum.

“Let's go look at apartments for rent.”