Four Months Ago:

"I fucking hate lines." Sarah groaned.

She twirled a strand of blond hair around her finger as she waited in front of the entrance to get into the entrance of the auditorium of Morning Star Academy.

"Right? Like the lines are like totally way too long." A high pitch voice squealed from next to her.

Sarah looked at the curvy fair-skinned girl. "Who are you again?"

"I'm Maryanne." She smiled.

Sarah rolled her eyes. She was hoping she would be waiting with some cute boys. Instead she was stuck with the ultimate loser. Sarah scanned the crowd, searching for a cute boy to pursue. She stopped when she caught a handsome boy towards the front of the line. He had broad shoulder and sun kissed skin. His hair was dark brown and was worn kind of shaggy.

"Stay here Beth, I'm going to go seduce the cutie over there." She smiled.

Maryanne crossed her arms. "My name is-"

Sarah cut her off. "I don't care if your name is Mother Theresa, scram."

Sarah marched over to the boy, ignoring the protests from the other kids. The boy looked over at Sarah and smiled.

"Hello there." He smirked.

"Hi, I saw you over there and just thought maybe you wanted some company, surely you aren't content talking to these losers all day," Sarah said.

He chuckled. "You're bold."

"Oh, honey I'm a lot of things, flexible being one of them." She smiled.

He raised an eyebrow. "You're also very forward."

"I'm Sarah, don't worry you're going to be seeing a lot of me at Morning Star." She smiled.

"Oh really." He smirked.

A loud bell rung, causing the teens to jump. The doors swung open causing everyone to gasp. Some kids grinned with excitement, happy for a chance to be heroes. Others gulped, scared of what was to come. Sarah could care less about the Initiation right now. Her sights were set on this cute boy.

He turned back to her and chuckled. "Looks like that's my cue."

He turned and walked off into the entrance.

"Wait I never got your name." She called.

He stopped and looked back at her with a coy grin. "No, you didn't did you?"

With that, he continued walking leaving the girl frustrated. A challenge. She was going to have some fun with him.

"This year is going to be great." She chuckled.

Now:

Sarah

"I'm sorry I'm a bitch, it's genetic," Sarah said.

Fouzia rolled her eyes. "That's the worst apology in human history."

The two girls sat on the floor of their room. Fouzia had gotten the girls breakfast and they were currently munching on waffles and eggs.

Sarah groaned and crossed her arms. She decided that she wanted to apologize for what she said to everyone the day of the Rescue Assignment. Sarah sighed and looked at her roommate who was currently stuffing a whole waffle in her mouth.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Sarah asked.

"Apologies are supposed to be from the heart," Fouzia said.

Sarah frowned. "There's the problem right there, I don't have a heart."

"I'm sure you have a heart..ish. A heart like substance in your chest at least."

Sarah sighed and reached for the pendant around her neck. The same pendant Matt had given her. Lately, it felt heavier than usual. After everything Matt had done to her, she wasn't sure why she still wore it.

"You shouldn't wear that," Fouzia said.

"It's pretty," Sarah mumbled.

"It's a sign to Matt that you still care about him," Fouzia said.

The girl was right, however, Sarah felt it was hard to depart from the necklace. He had it specially made just for her. That showed that he loved her, maybe there was a part of their relationship that could be saved.

"Do you want to tell somebody what's been happening? Like an adult?" Fouzia asked.

Sarah shook her head. If she told someone Matt would get in trouble. And on top of that, she would feel too much shame. How could she let that happen to her? How could she love someone that did nothing but hurt her?

"I don't want anyone to know," Sarah said quietly.

"I could talk to my sister in law." Fouzia reasoned.

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "Who's your sister in your law?"

Fouzia's face fell. She sighed and brought her fingers to her temples and massaged them gently.

"Sarah, think about it." She said.

Sarah shrugged. "I'm drawing a blank."

"Someone I share a last name with," Fouzia said.

Sarah suddenly remembered Fouzia's last name and blushed. "You mean Mrs. Zambiea? You guys are related? How was I supposed to know? Wouldn't it have been racist for me to assume so?"

"Let me get this straight. You didn't think it was offensive to ask if I was a terrorist, but you thought it would be offensive to ask if I was related to someone I share a last name with." Fouzia questioned.

Sarah chuckled. "I did say that didn't I, no wonder you hate me."

Fouzia smirked. "You're an intriguing person Sarah Smith. An intriguing person with questionable morals, but intriguing nonetheless."

She looked at Sarah with a more serious look. "Promise me you'll stay away from Matt."

Sarah nodded. Although she was still fighting her feelings for Matt, she couldn't be in the same room as him without wanting to physically fight him.

"I promise." She said.


Matt

10 Years Ago:

"You're not taking him!" His father screamed.

"Calm down, it's not you ever wanted to be a father." His mother hissed.

A five-year-old Matt watched from the crook of the staircase to see the argument. He hoped it didn't end like last time. However, it always seemed to end badly. A loud slap was heard, followed by the sound of his mother screaming.

"I said you're not taking him! He's not leaving, and neither are you." Matt's father yelled.

His father looked down at his mother, the brunette woman was on the floor sobbing. "Jesus Laurel, look what you made me do. Do you think I like hurting you? You just never listen to me." His father yelled.

Matt watched the scene in horror. The fights always ended like this. With his father standing over his mother's battered body.

Now:

"Matt!" Jake yelled.

Matt gasped and sat up with a start. His roommate was towering over him, shaking him as he yelled in his ear.

"What the hell?" Matt coughed.

"You were screaming like a little bitch in your sleep." He said.

"So you decided to roughly shake me awake? Are you fucking stupid?" Matt cursed.

Jake rolled his eyes. "Now I know for next time. Calm down man, you're always so moody."

Matt crossed his arms. "I'm not moody."

Lately, Matt couldn't stand to look at his roommate. He hated how smug he always looked. He was on the varsity football team and now he was higher than him in the rankings. How was that fair? Matt was a legacy student and with his quirk, he could wipe Jake off the face of the earth. Yet he walked around here so confidently. Like he didn't care what Matt thought.

"Why are you staring at me?" Jake asked.

"Fuck off." Matt hissed.

"The goody-two-shoes finally shows his true colors. I knew that your All-American boy next door act was bullshit." Jake smirked.

However, there was one reason, in particular, Matt hated Jake. One reason that made his blood boil more than the others. The kiss. Yesterday Sarah kissed him. Granted it was on the cheek, but the fact that she could barely look at him yet had no problem kissing Jake on the cheek made him furious.

"You're one to talk." Matt snorted.

Jake raised his eyebrows. "Are you on your period or something? You've been snappy all week."

"Do you think I'm fucking stupid?" Matt demanded.

"Well right now, kind of." Jake chuckled.

Matt sighed. Arguing with a meathead like Jake wouldn't do him any good. It was a waste of time, he would need to catch this fly with honey, not vinegar. He looked up at Jake and forced a smile.

"We're friends, right?" He asked.

"Fuck no!" Jake chuckled. "Dude you barely talk to me."

Matt frowned. He had a point.

"However, we're roommates. And I'm sure you realize there's a certain code that we need to follow." Matt reasoned.

"Sure," Jake said.

Matt smiled. "So it's not too much to ask if you could just stay away from Sarah."

Jake coughed loudly. Matt smiled, just the reaction he was hoping for.

"What are you talking about?" Jake asked.

"I saw her kiss you," Matt grumbled.

It took everything in his power not to set Jake on fire right now. The thought seemed so satisfying to him. That would teach him not to mess with him, especially not to mess with things that belonged to him.

"She kissed me on the cheek dude. Besides shouldn't you be talking to Sarah?" Jake asked.

The boy smiled and took a step closer to Matt. "Or maybe she doesn't think you're good enough now that you're ranked number fifteen, while she's number three. Perhaps she's finally realized you're not worth her time." Jake said.

Matt growled. Those words made his blood boil. That wasn't true. Sarah had to know that he was the only one for her. He was the only that understood her, and she was the only one that understood him. They belonged together. Nothing or no one was going to change that. She was the first person to look at him and see something more than the son of a pro-hero. She was the only thing that he had worth fighting for. He would be damned if he let Jake take it from him.

However, Matt was curious about why Jake was antagonizing him. Sure Jake was an ass, but usually, he had a motive. Sarah. Matt smiled, his theory was correct. Jake liked Sarah. Matt shouldn't have been surprised. Jake was as shallow as a kiddy pool, and to him getting with the blond cheerleader was probably the most he would ever amount to in life.

"You like Sarah," Matt said aloud.

Jake cleared his throat and smiled. However, Matt could tell he was faking it.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Jake said calmly.

"She's never going to date you. You know that right Jake?" Matt taunted.

How stupid could Jake be? Did he really think Sarah would leave Matt for him? He was nothing. A nobody.

"Shut up," Jake growled.

"She's never going to fuck you. You know that right Jake?" Matt smirked.

Jake balled his fists and looked down at his feet. He probably didn't want Matt to see how angry he was making him right now. Matt smirked.

"Shut up," Jake repeated.

"It's ironic, isn't it? You can't even land the class whore. I'm at the bottom of the rankings and she still begged me to sleep with her. Emphasis on the beg. It just proves that you're trash, Jake." Matt hissed, venom in his voice

Jake roared and charged. With remarkable speed, he grabbed Matt by his throat and slammed him against the wall.

"I said shut the hell up!" Jake yelled.

Matt gulped, the boy's grip was iron tight. He wasn't holding back. Matt growled and tried to move his lips to utter a command, however, Jake was squeezing too tight. He couldn't activate his quirk. Matt's face widened in fear, at the realization. Anger filled Jake's eyes as he tightened his grip.

Matt squeaked as spots began to dance along with his vision. The room was spinning. Suddenly he remembered when he choked Sarah. Was this what she felt?

"Jake!" A voice called.

The two boys turned to see Victoria standing in the doorway. Her eyes were as wide as saucers as she looked at the scene in shock.

"Let go of him!" Victoria demanded.

Jake growled. "He deserves it."

"Be that as it may, choking him won't fix any problem that he's created," Victoria said.

Jake looked at Victoria and sighed. He let go of Matt's throat, allowing the boy to fall to the floor. Matt gasped, he was relieved that he could breathe again. Instinctively his hands went to his throat, he could already tell there was going to be a bruise.

Jake looked down at Matt and frowned. "Think about this, Lex was able to beat you, Sarah was able to beat you, and I could have destroyed you just now. So, what makes you think you're the best in class?"

Jake got down to his knees and looked Matt in the eye. "Also Union Lad is a fucking awful name."

He got up and left the room, leaving Victoria and Matt alone.

"Aren't you going to help me up?" Matt coughed.

"I'm sure you deserved it," Victoria smirked.


Alexander

"Why did Sarah ask us all to come to the common room?" Alexander asked.

Hunter shrugged. "Maybe to yell at us again."

"I'm still trying to deal with the fact she said I was irrelevant," Kaleb said.

"I feel like Cleo got it the worst," Alexander said.

Kaleb laughed. "That's true. At least Sarah didn't say I gave her cramps."

Alexander's eyes wandered over to Maryanne. She was sitting next to Cleo laughing at something the blond was saying. Alexander sighed; he hadn't talked to Maryanne in almost two weeks. Was she avoiding him?

"Alexander you're drooling," Hunter smirked.

Alexander gasped and his hands went to his cheeks, however, they were dry. He groaned; he couldn't believe had fallen for Hunter's joke.

"Don't worry bud, your crush on Maryanne isn't obvious," Kaleb said.

Alexander sighed. "I just wished she talked to me."

"Instead of waiting for her to talk to you, why don't you talk to her?" Hunter asked.

"Because if she's avoiding me, then I wouldn't want to make her uncomfortable." Alexander reasoned.

"You're being too polite. You have to fight for what you want." Hunter said.

Just as he said this his phone began to buzz. Hunter sighed and reached into his pocket. His face darkened when he opened up his phone screen.

"Who is that? You've phone has been blowing up all morning?" Kaleb asked.

"No one worth mentioning." Hunter sighed.

He put his phone and looked back at his roommate. Something was wrong with him. There was a certain darkness under his eyes that the boy wasn't used to seeing. Normally Hunter always had a smile on his face. Now the only thing painted on his face was a pained scowl.

"Hello, my fellow students!" Sarah called.

The class turned to look at Sarah standing in front of them. A bright smile was on her face as she scanned the class.

"I just wanted to formally apologize for my actions. I shouldn't have insulted you all like that." Sarah said.

Alexander raised an eyebrow. He would never would have guessed Sarah would have been the to apologize for…well anything.

"I shouldn't have said any of those things. I just want each of you to know that I didn't mean it, and I'm really sorry." Sarah said.

Her eyes went to Cleo. "Except for Cleo."

Fouzia glared at the girl and Sarah groaned. "Fine even Cleo. I'm sorry guys. Do you forgive me?"

Silence fell upon the room. Everyone started to look at each other, unsure of what to say. Alexander smiled, it seemed like she was trying to make an effort. At this point in time, it was all anyone could ask her to do.

He stood up. "I forgive you."

Maryanne smiled and stood up too. "It's water under the bridge. No pun attended."

Well, you didn't insult me, but I appreciate the apology anyway. Aerolynn smiled.

Kevin nodded his head. "I of all people know it what it feels like to lash out. Don't worry about it, Sarah."

"I don't forgive you, but I won't snap your neck in your sleep." Alice shrugged.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Thanks, dollface."

"I'm not really sure if you apologized to me, but I'll accept it anyway," Cleo said.

"That's the best you're going to get McScream," Sarah smirked.

Her phone buzzed and she frowned. She picked it up and frowned.

"Everything alright?" Alexander asked.

Sarah looked up at him with a smile and nodded slowly.

"Yeah totally, I'll catch up with you guys later," Sarah said.

With that she skipped out of the common room, leaving the rest of the class alone. Lex turned his head as she left. He smiled and stood up.

"Now that she's gone, I just want to say something-"

"Are you dying?" Jake asked.

Lex widened his eyes. "What? No!"

"Are you withdrawing from school?" Victoria asked hopefully.

"No!" Lex said.

Is this about Homecoming? Aerolynn asked.

"No!" Lex said.

"Do you have chlamydia? Don't sweat it, it happens to the best of us." Hunter smirked.

Alexander shook his head. "No, I think that's just you."

"If you would all stop interrupting me, then you would know that tonight there's a student art gallery. One of Sarah's pieces is going to be shown, and I thought it would be nice to go support her." Lex said.

The room went silent once more. A loud cough was heard in the back. Although Alexander wasn't mad at the girl, they weren't really friends. Going to a night to celebrate Sarah seemed strange, considering he was pretty sure she hated him.

"Come on guys, she just apologized." Lex reasoned.

"Yeah that's great, and I'm sure we all appreciate it, but it doesn't erase all the mean things she's said." Faith said.

Lex frowned. "She helped us win. She's been a great friend."

"Of course, you would defend her." Faith muttered.

Alexander raised an eyebrow. He was surprised Faith was looking at Lex with such anger, he assumed that they were best friends. Lex seemed oblivious to her death stare. And continued talking.

"I think it would mean a lot to her if we all showed up there. Plus, if we keep her happy it decreases the chances of her going full-on Queen Bee on us." Lex reasoned.

"Point taken, sign me up." Cleo chuckled.

Maryanne smiled. "Drama aside, the event sounds really fun. We should support our fellow students."

"I'm pretty sure I'm obligated to go as her roommate but sure," Fouzia said.

Alexander nodded. Despite everything Sarah had done she was still his classmate. Plus she was a member of the Black Church Losers, it felt like they both belonged to an elite secret group…of losers. He had to go to support her.

"I'm in," Alexander said.

"Of course I'll go," Jake said eagerly.

Aerolynn chuckled at the eagerness in his voice. Jake coughed and changed his tone.

"I mean it's not like I have anything else to do," Jake said trying to sound nonchalant.

Sure. Aerolynn snickered.

Soon the entire class agreed to go. Alexander smiled. It would be nice to have a night out that didn't involve fighting or sudden death.

"That's great, I'm sure it's going to be a fun night," Lex said.


Sarah

This wasn't real. This wasn't real. The text had to be fake. Or a mistake. Her father wasn't here. There was no way. During her speech to her class, she received a text. A text from her father. She hadn't spoken to him in months.

Sarah frowned and unlocked her phone.

DAD: Hey kiddo, I'm in your room. Want to talk?

How was that even possible? She never told him that she had gotten into the Morning Star Academy, and her mother couldn't have told him because they couldn't have a conversation longer than five minutes without one threatening to stab the other.

So how did he find out? Why was he here? Was he dying? That had to be it. What else could it have been? She doubted he wanted to see her.

She opened her door slowly. What if it was secretly an ax murderer? Sarah frowned, she suddenly remembered she had no idea what her father looked like. How sad was that? She only had ever received phone calls and letters from him. Sure, he sent her pictures of places he went, but none of them ever had him in it. Asking her mother was out of the question, every time Sarah mentioned her father she practically had a stroke.

"Sarah!" A southern voice called.

Thick, heavy, and warm. That was the same voice that called her. It was strange how someone who was never there for her could have such a soothing voice. It seemed like a cruel joke.

"Dad?" She said questioningly.

He sat on the desk chair, a warm smile on his face. He had sun-kissed skin, golden blond hair, and sky blue eyes. Sarah always wondered where she got her eyes from since her mother's eye color was light brown.

"What are you doing here?" Sarah asked.

He looked down slowly and cleared his throat. It seemed like he was searching for something to say.

"That Ms. Morningstar is a stern lady. It was so hard getting my visitation paper approved." He said.

"Well, they have those papers to make sure it's actually relatives visiting and not strangers," Sarah said.

She emphasized the word strangers. How could he sit here so calmly? As if he only missed a couple of weeks of her life and not fourteen years.

"So how are things?" He asked.

"Good, I guess. I'm on the cheerleading team, I'm not the best in the core classes, but I'm doing well in my hero classes." She said nonchalantly.

"That's good." He said.

"So is there a reason why you're here? I assume you know it's not my birthday. Well, you've never been to my birthday, so I guess you wouldn't." Sarah snickered bitterly.

He frowned. "That's not fair."

"I'm sorry what's fair about this situation? You don't get to play the victim." She hissed.

He stood up and walked over to Sarah. Sarah was a pretty tall girl, however, her father almost towered over her. He smiled half-heartedly almost as if he knew that trying to reach out to her by now was pointless. Or was it? She craved her father's attention all of her life, but now that she had it, she wasn't sure how to react.

"I know I haven't been the best father. I loved your mother with all my heart, but then she just turned into someone so…cruel and bitter. I let my perception of her affect how I treated my own daughter. And for that Sarah, I am truly sorry. I am sorry that I never showed up to your birthday parties. I'm sorry I never came to the father-daughter dances. I'm sorry I left you alone with a woman who raised you to fend for yourself." He said solemnly.

Sarah wiped her eyes to avoid tears coming down, but it was useless. Her cheeks were damp with her sadness.

"It's fine," Sarah said.

He shook his head. "It's not, but I plan to change that. I want to be in your life more." He said.

"You do?" Sarah asked hopefully.

How was this happening? Why was this happening? Was she dreaming? It was almost as if everything she had ever wanted was about to be given to her.

"I do. I really do." He smiled. "But for right now, the only thing I can do is thank your boyfriend."

Sarah's face fell. "My boyfriend." She repeated.

What had Matt done?

"He's the one that convinced me to come down here. He told me that I was missing out on an incredible opportunity to meet my daughter, one of the best people he's ever known." He chuckled.

Sarah gulped. "Matt said that?"

He would do something like this for her even after everything they had been through. Why? Suddenly Sarah felt an overwhelming feeling of guilt. Had she done something wrong? Matt wasn't perfect, but he still loved her. Maybe if she just talked to him, they could still fix their former relationship. Perhaps hope wasn't lost and she had given up on Matthew Freeman to early.


Matt

Matt waited outside of Sarah's door patiently. The conversation with the man had to be over soon. He tapped his foot, in anticipation. Would this prove to Sarah that he was ready to turn over a new leaf? He could show her that change was possible.

He could show her that he was ready to be someone different. Someone worthy of her love. He just needed her to forgive him. Then they could move past everything that happened. He could make sure that this time would be different. That he would be different.

The door opened with a soft click revealing Sarah and the blond man. He gave Matt a knowing smile before walking in the opposite direction. Matt turned to look at Sarah and smiled.

"How did it go?" Matt asked.

Sarah blushed. "It went as well as most unexpected visits from deadbeat parents. You called him?"

Matt gulped. "Yeah. You always talked about how you wished you had a closer relationship with your dad, I just thought that it would be a nice thing for you to gain that experience. I know what it's like not to have a parent around."

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "You do?"

Matt sighed. Laurel. His mother. He often tried not to think about her.

"My mom left me and my father when I was young. I haven't heard from her since. My father tried tracking her down, but she's very good at staying hidden." He said.

Sarah's face fell. "Oh. How come you never told me?"

"It's embarrassing. I've always prided myself on having a picture-perfect life. White picket fence, good family, strong quirk, etc. Now I come here and meet people who are better than me…happier than me. I've realized I'm not perfect and I never have been." Matt said quietly.

He looked up at Sarah and laughed weakly. "The only person that's ever-made feel like I'm a person and not just a son of Pro-Hero is you. You're the only person that's told me it's okay to be myself and not have to constantly worry about my image."

"That's why I love you." He blurted.

Sarah cleared her throat. "You don't love me."

"Yes, I do," Matt said adamantly.

Of course, he did. Why else could not stop thinking about her? It had to be love.

"Matt you don't even know me. How can you love me?" Sarah asked.

"I don't know Sarah. I don't know why or how, but I do. I know I love you, and I know you love me. It's been you and me since the Initiation." Matt smiled.

He reached for her and took it slowly. "We belong together."

Sarah looked at him with a glance he couldn't quite decipher. Was it hope? Longing? Pain?

"I know that I've hurt you, but I've already talked to my father to get me into counseling so I can work on managing my anger. I really want to make this work Sarah." Matt said.

"Make it work?" Sarah said quietly.

"I know I messed up, but I will do anything to be able to have the privilege to call you my girlfriend again," Matt said.

God, she looked beautiful. He wanted to kiss her right now, but he knew it would be too soon. She needed time to trust him again.

"You should come to my art show tonight," Sarah said.

Matt raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know you were into art."

"Like I said there's a lot of things that you don't know about me. We have a lot of things to discuss, we can talk about it tonight." Sarah said.

Matt smiled. It was a start. "I'll be there."

He looked at her neck and noticed it was bear. "Do you not like the necklace I gave you? I can give you another one."

"Oh." She stuttered. "No…the one you gave me was fine. I mean it was great, I just wanted to make sure it looked good for tonight."

He nodded slowly. It seemed like she was lying, but he didn't want to force it. "Cool. So I'll talk to you later."

"Talk to you later." She said.

With that, she went back into her room and closed the door. Matt grinned and skipped back to the boy's hallway. Everything was going according to plan. He would have Sarah back by the end of the night. He stopped when he saw who was outside his room.

The actor. He was waiting for Matt with an angry look on his face. Crap Matt had forgotten to pay him.

"How was my southern accent? I felt like it was very authentic." He asked.

Matt rolled his eyes. He hated dealing with actors. "You sounded great Donovan. If I didn't know you were as gay as the day is long I would have actually bought the Southern dad vibe,"

"I'm assuming that's a compliment." Donovan scoffed.

He glared at Matt. "I should make you pay me double for what you made me do to that girl. Pretending to be her father, that's just cruel."

"It was necessary for her own good." Matt frowned.

Sarah's father didn't care about her, so Matt had to make sure he could step in to be the man in her life. Once Sarah's "father" abounded her once again, she would realize Matt was the only one that cared about her.

"You don't really think she's dumb enough to buy this plan right?" Donovan asked.

"She has no reason to suspect otherwise. She's never met her father, she's never even seen a picture of him." Matt said.

"You better hope her real father doesn't decide to make an appearance, that could be a real disaster." He chuckled.

"He won't come back for her. He's just a lousy, selfish deadbeat who doesn't realize what he's missing out on." Matt hissed.

"Whatever, you have my money?" Donovan asked.

Matt reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He pulled five crisp one-hundred-dollar bills and handed them to Donovan.

"Pleasure doing business with you," Matt said.

"The pleasure is all mine. Call me the next time you need me for a job!" Donovan called.

Matt smirked and was prepared to walk into his room when he saw Faith glaring at him.

"What are you doing in the boys' hallway?" Matt asked.

"You can't complain with all the times you have Sarah in your room. Do you really think we can't hear you two-"

Matt cut her off. "Forget about it. Have you considered my offer?"

"You mean helping you tear apart Sarah and Lex? No, because I'm not an awful person. Also, Lex says that they're just friends and I believe him." Faith said.

Just a hint of uncertainty was in her voice. She knew the truth. Just like Matt did.

"You don't honestly think that's true, do you? What could they possibly have in common? She's a cheerleader and he's a hipster. They have to be sleeping together." Matt said.

"Lex is not a hipster." Faith snapped.

"You just don't want it to be the truth because you like him," Matt said.

"Matt you're delusional. Have you considered maybe the reason why Sarah doesn't want to be with you isn't because she's with someone else? Maybe it's because you're doing something. Can you honestly say you've treated her with love, respect, kindnesses, etc? If not that might be why she doesn't want to be around you." Faith said.

The words hit Matt's heart like a bullet. Was he the one that messed everything up? Was this really all his fault?

"He's taking her to the art gallery isn't he?" Matt said quietly.

Faith's face fell. She cleared her throat and forced a smile. "Like I said, they're just friends."

With that she walked off, leaving him alone.

Ten Years Ago:

"Matty." A soft voice called.

Matt sat up slowly and groaned. His mother watching him with a loving stare. Her eyes were red and puffy, had she been crying?

"Matt, I have a couple of errands to run, so I'll gone for a couple of days." His mother smiled.

Her voice was soft like honey and always had a way of soothing Matt. However, despite the fact she spoke calmly and had a smile on her face, she seemed terrified.

"Is something wrong mommy?" Matt asked.

She caressed his cheek and laughed. A laugh Matt could tell wasn't genuine.

"Everything is fine. I just want you to know, that no matter what happens, I'll always love you." She said.

Matt smiled. "I love you too mommy."

She leaned down and kissed his forehead and smiled. With that she left the room, however, Matt could still smell the scent of her perfume. He didn't know it then, but that was the last time he would ever see his mother.


Maryanne

As far as Maryanne was concerned things had to go well for her tonight. The universe had to give her back some good karma after how shitty her past couple of weeks had been. First Orion almost killed her. Then she failed the Rescue assignment and let the rest of her team down. Granted the four of them were more focused on the fighting aspect than the rescuing aspect, still, it seemed like she could have done more.

Since her quirk was primarily defense, she had been training her water form to create whips out of her arms. The only problem was that it took a lot of concentration to maintain a water whip, which usually meant that she had to make the rest of her body solid. If her reaction time would have been just a little quicker, Aerolynn wouldn't have been able to knock her out.

She proved once again that she wasn't a good fighter. She only won her fight with Jake by chance. If she hadn't lost control in the arena, he probably would have demolished her.

She sighed as she walked to her room. At least the art gallery should be fun. She needed a night where she could just worry about being a teenager, and not a student in the hero course.

She opened her door and wasn't surprised to see Victoria was not there. Ever since she started dating Matt, she spent most of her free time with and when she wasn't with him she was training in the gym. She walked over to her bed and smiled. Maybe she could get a quick nap. She needed a break from her own mind.

However, she frowned when she saw a piece of paper on her bed. Did Victoria leave her something? As she got closer she realized it wasn't a note but a polaroid. She gulped and picked it up slowly. What she saw made her stomach drop. It was a picture of her sleeping. Judging by her pajamas it had to have been last night. She flipped it over and screamed at what she saw. Written in pretty black letters were the words: Did You Really Think I Wouldn't Find You?

She dropped the picture like it was radioactive. Maybe this was Victoria playing a sick joke. No, she didn't have a sense of humor.

It had to be him. How did he find her? She thought she was done with for good. A shiver ran down Maryanne's spine. He found her again. He always found her.

The only question is what she was going to do now. What was he going to do?

A loud knock was heard on the door that made Maryanne jump. She placed her hand to her chest and took in a deep breath. She sighed.

"You're a hero in training now, you don't need to be scared of your own shadow," Maryanne told herself.

She carefully tiptoed towards the door and opened it cautiously. Standing in front of her was Alexander. She let out a breath in relief. She was safe.

"Hey, Maryanne. Can I come?" Alexander asked.

Maryanne blushed, she didn't realize she kept the door half closed, leaving just enough opening for her to see his face.

"Yeah." Maryanne chuckled.

She opened the door and let the boy come in.

"I'm surprised you came to visit," Maryanne said.

She hadn't talked to him since their kiss. So much had happened since then.

Alexander gulped. "Well, I was afraid you wouldn't want to see me."

Maryanne frowned. "Why would you think that?"

"It just seems like you were avoiding me. Did I do something wrong? If this is about the kiss, it didn't have to mean anything if you didn't want it to." Alexander said.

"No!" Maryanne blurted.

She looked away sheepishly. "I have been avoiding you, but not because I was upset with you, but because I was upset with me."

Alexander raised an eyebrow. "I'm afraid I don't understand."

"It's just that I figured you wouldn't want to be with someone like me," Maryanne muttered.

"Someone like you?" Alexander questioned.

"I heard about your fight with El Tigre. You fought until you almost died. You were a real hero when Orion showed up I was helpless and weak. You should be with a girl who has what it takes to be a pro hero." Maryanne said.

Maryanne bit her lip. She wasn't that girl. She was in over her head. She didn't have what it took to be a hero. Why did she even consider this?

"Can I say something?" Alexander asked.

"It's a free country." Maryanne chuckled.

"When I was fighting El Tigre, I wasn't being brave. I was just trying to survive. I don't look at you as less than because you were able to be taken about Orion." Alexander said.

He smiled. "Maryanne sometimes I think our class forgets that just because we're training to be heroes means we have to be fearless. It doesn't. Being a hero is about helping people, and you are the kindest person I have ever met."

She blushed, her cheeks becoming as red as a tomato. "You really think so."

"I do." He chuckled. "So if you're feeling particularly courageous tonight, would you consider going as my date to Sarah's art gallery tonight?"

Maryanne coughed, almost choking on her tongue. "Your date!"

"Oh, if you don't want to go with me that's fine, I guess-"

"No! No!" Maryanne blurted.

She sighed; she was probably making a total fool out of herself. "It's just that I would love that."

"Great. I'll swing around your room at around six o clock?" Alexander asked.

"That's perfect." She grinned.

"Cool." Alexander smiled.

"Cool," Maryanne said.

"Uh…great," Alexander said.

"Uh….totally," Maryanne said.

"Yeah." Alexander muttered.

Maryanne chuckled. "This might be the part where you leave before we run out of words to say."

"You have a point." He chuckled.

"I'll see you later." He smirked.

He walked out of the room, leaving Maryanne alone. The girl and pumped her fists in the air.

"Way to go Maryanne Isla." She said to herself.

With Alexander asking her out she had almost forgotten about the polaroid. Almost. She looked back at the picture on her bed. If he was back, she was afraid this time she wouldn't be able to stop him.


Kevin

"Does the stain on my tie look like spaghetti sauce or blood?" Kevin asked his roommate.

Jarret looked at him with a concerned glance. Kevin blushed. "It's spaghetti sauce, but after my last outburst I don't want the whole class thinking I'm a psychopath."

"Better the class psycho, than the class coward." Jarret sighed.

Kevin paused. He often forgot how much Jarret had been struggling. He tried not to judge his roommate, he knew how hard it was to be an outcast. It felt wrong to shun him for just one mistake.

"After how well you did in the last assignment, I'm sure that most of the class has forgotten about what happened with Orion," Jarret said.

"I wish. There's no excuse for what I did, that mistake is going to follow me for the rest of my time at MSA." He said.

Kevin frowned. He assumed that their class would be more forgiving. No batted an eye when Cleo almost made Alexander's brain explode, or when Victoria attacked Fouzia, or when Kevin bit Aerolynn. He thought their class would be more tolerant of mistakes since everyone seemed to be harboring their own secrets.

"Well, tonight at the gallery will change things for you Jarret. I'm sure both of us can turn our luck around." Kevin smiled.

Jarret chuckled. "You're optimism is going to kill me."

If my quirk doesn't kill you first. Kevin thought bitterly.

Kevin shook the dark thought out of his mind and focused back on his tie. The red stain sent the wrong message. He reached into his drawer and searched for the ties his sister had bought him. Given the fact she was a neurotic Nigerian, she bought him these expecting him to be an engineer or a doctor.

She was quite surprised and slightly disappointed when he expressed interest in being a hero.

Soon loud knocking was heard at the door. "That's probably Cleo, you can let her in," Kevin called.

Jarret shrugged and walked over to the door. Kevin turned back to his array of ties. Was purple too festive? He scratched his chin and frowned. He didn't really do well in social situations, he was social distancing before it was cool. With his quirk, he always made sure that he never got too invested in anything. Strong emotions always triggered his quirk. Although Kevin had been able to tame it a lot over the years, there were still times where he lost control. Especially over the scent of human blood.

Normally Kevin would drink animal blood to activate his quirk. He thought drinking blood, in general, was disgusting, but somehow his body converted it to energy that fueled his body with amazing strength, speed, endurance, and senses. He could still maintain his humanity with animal blood, however, human blood was consuming.

Just a drop could make him want to slaughter the entire school. He couldn't actually taste a difference between the two, but it was like his body could sense it. Human blood was like a drug he had been fighting an addiction to all his life.

That's why he stayed away from people. He needed to be in control of his emotions all of the time.

Kevin frowned when he noticed the room was silent? Had Jarret walked out of the room? Kevin turned and was surprised to see in front of the door was a note card. He reached down to pick it up and unfolded.

Dear Kevin Odeymi

We regret to inform you that your roommate Jarret Han will be missing for the next couple of days. Due to his past actions, I have decided that he needs a personal one on one training to make sure he is equipped to be a hero.

Sincerely,

Amanda Morningstar

Kevin gulped. What did personal one on one training mean? How was she able to take Jarret from the room without him hearing or smelling anything? He could he smell the perfume the lunch lady was wearing from the cafeteria, yet he couldn't sense someone new entering the room and taking Jarret?

"He's going to be fine," Kevin told himself.

At least he hoped so.


Sarah

"I shouldn't have worn a green dress. Green makes my ass look fat. And not in a sexy way." Sarah complained.

She and Lex were currently strolling through the large hallway inside the gallery. They had just arrived ten minutes ago, and Lex said he was determined to find her painting. Something Sarah found mortifying. She didn't just because her picture was in the gallery would mean people would want to see it. It was like when people went to the movies to see Oscar-worthy movies, it wasn't to enjoy themselves it was just so they could tell their friends they went.

Yet Lex actually seemed enthusiastic to be here.

"You look fine," Lex said.

They kept walking, however, he stopped and smiled. He pointed to a table by the bar. "Look there's Alexander, Maryanne, Kaleb, and Hunter."

Lex was already running over there before Sarah could say anything. Sarah sighed in relief. Maybe they could distract him, so he wouldn't want to see her picture.

"Hey guys," Lex said.

"What's up roomie. Where's your other half?" Kaleb asked.

Lex chuckled. "Faith said she had to do something last minute, but she'll be here before the show ends."

"That's unfortunate wanted to congratulate her on making it to the top five." Maryanne said.

"Do you miss your spot?" Alexander asked.

Maryanne scoffed. "Oh no. Yeah, it was nice being seen at the top of the class, but some of our classmates are vultures. I don't want that kind of attention."

"Believe me, if I could go down I would. Everyone keeps giving me the stink eye, because I've been number one this entire time." Lex sighed.

"You guys shouldn't be ashamed of your achievements," Kaleb said.

Lex sighed. "I suppose you have a point."

Sarah smirked. "I for one like being in the top five. Half the football team has already asked me out, but I'm saving myself for the baseball team."

She needed cute boys to occupy her time after the whole Matt situation. She was still conflicted on how to handle that. Or what she even wanted from him.

"Hunter you're very quiet. Don't you have a joke to crack?" Lex asked.

Hunter laughed quietly. It seemed like he was having a bad night.

"Are you not enjoying the show? Because we can totally all leave if you're not feeling well." Sarah said hopefully.

Maybe if Hunter wanted to leave the others would too.

"No, I saw some really cool paintings. Like the one with the man on fire," Hunter said.

"Oh, that was a metaphor for the pain of modern society and how it can damage impressionable youths," Sarah said.

Everyone's face fell as their eyes went to Sarah. "Or something." She muttered.

God, she probably sounded like a total freakshow.

"You know a lot about art." Alexander said.

"I do not!" Sarah snapped.

"It's not a bad thing," Maryanne said.

Sarah sighed. "Whatever."

"Speaking of where is your painting? We came here to support you, but we can't find it anywhere." Kaleb said.

Sarah sighed in relief. "Well, it must not have been good enough to make the cut."

"Don't be ridiculous, I talked to your art teacher yesterday and she said you would be featured," Lex said.

Sarah groaned. Of course, he did. Things were so much easier when all of the class hated her. Well, she was sure they still hated her, but at least back then they didn't try and be nice. She wasn't sure how to handle all of this friendliness. Besides she knew that they wouldn't like her picture. It was strange and disturbing; they would probably think she was a weirdo. Or worse, they would realize how broken she felt.

"Are you looking for Sarah's painting?" Victoria asked.

The six teens turned to Victoria. She was wearing a long flowing silver dress that looked like it was made of moonlight. Sarah wasn't into girls, but even she had to admit Victoria looked hot.

"You clean up nicely," Hunter smirked.

"Fuck off," Victoria said.

It was strange how she could even make curse words sound like SAT words.

"Her painting is the one with the huge crowd around it," Victoria said nonchalantly.

Sarah coughed, choking on her drink. "Wait what?"

"Really let's go see," Lex said.

"Wait no!" Sarah said.

It was too late the rest of her classmates, were gone already running to see her picture. She turned to Victoria and frowned.

"Did you really have to do that?" Sarah asked.

"I'm confused, you don't want them to see your painting? Why? It's actually good. No offense, I just didn't think you had the emotional range to convey that much pain." Victoria said.

Sarah scoffed. "Says the robot."

"I'm not a robot." Victoria hissed.

"Whatever." Sarah sighed.

She grabbed her purse and walked over to the painting. Maybe she could just use her quirk and slow them down.

"Sarah!" Kevin called.

Sarah groaned and turned to see Kevin walking towards her. She hated how happy he looked; did he not know her whole world was about to implode?

"Where's your painting?" Kevin asked.

"Hopefully in the dumpster." Sarah scowled.

Kevin raised an eyebrow. "Pardon?"

"Don't worry about it. Where's your boyfriend?" Sarah asked.

"Excuse me?" Kevin frowned.

"Your boyfriend. Jarret." Sarah said.

Kevin crossed his arms. "Jarret and I aren't dating. Neither of us are gay."

"You aren't? I just assumed you two spent all day giving each handjobs. I guess I was mistaken." Sarah said.

"This is the first conversation you've had with me and your first thought is that I'm gay?" Kevin smirked.

Sarah shrugged. "Don't take it personally buttercup, I don't pay attention to anyone but myself. Tell you're boyfriend I said hi."

With that, she walked away leaving, the Nigerian vampire alone. She needed to find Lex and the others before they found the photo.

"Sarah!" A voice called.

Sarah groaned and spun around. Who else wanted to congratulate her today? Did no one know she was on a mission! Standing in front of her was Jake. He wore a fancy button-down and some black slacks. He cleaned up nicely for someone Sarah always considered a dumb jackass.

"Hey Jake. Have you seen Lex? I really need to speak to him." Sarah said.

The smile on Jake's face fell. "Oh. Yeah he went down by the painting of the angels." Jake said.

It was at this time did Sarah notice that he had a bouquet of roses in his hand. Were those for her? Why would he get her roses?

"Are those for-"

"Aerolynn!" He blurted.

She raised an eyebrow. "What?"

He cleared his throat. "I just mean that Aerolynn got them for you and asked me to give them to you. So yeah. Flowers from her. Not me. Definitely."

That made sense. Sort of.

"Thank you. Tell Aero I said it means a lot." She smiled as she took the roses.

"I'll talk to you later," Sarah said.

She walked away from him and made her way down to the other hallway. She had to find them before it was too late. However as soon as she saw her painting at the opposite end, she knew it was over. It seemed like her entire class was standing in front of her picture. With the exception of Jake, Victoria, and Matt.

"Crap." She muttered.

They all slowly turned to face her. "Did you paint this?" Cleo asked astonished.

"Yeah, it's nothing," Sarah said.

She couldn't believe she thought it would be cool to do this. What was she thinking?

"It's beautiful," Maryanne said.

"It's amazing." Hunter agreed.

Sarah frowned. "You guys don't have to patronize me."

"No really Sarah. It's amazing." Fouzia said.

She kept looking back between Sarah and the painting. Almost as if she couldn't decide if Sarah really painted it.

"It's raw." Alexander said breathlessly.

Sarah looked back up at her painting. It was a photo of a young girl with golden blond hair in a swimsuit. A bright smile was on her face despite the fact that tears were running down her cheeks. However, the tears were glittery and pink. However, she had a feeling that wasn't what was drawing her classmates in. It was several shadowy hands all over the little girl's body making themselves into her skin like bruises. Sarah was originally going to submit a picture of Chris Evans naked, but her art teacher said it had to be something that spoke to her soul. So she drew herself. At least how she saw herself.

"So that's my painting guys," Sarah said quietly.

"It's good," Matt said.

Sarah turned to see Matt standing in front of her. She gulped. She never expected him to see the painting. She knew that if he saw it would realize the deeper meaning behind it. Before she could say anything he turned and walked away.


Victoria

"Victoria." A voice called.

Victoria frowned and turned to see Coach Kirby walking towards her. That was strange, he didn't seem like the art show type.

"Can I help you?" Victoria asked.

He paused, he looked unsure of what to say. She considered it strange a grown man seemed scared to talk to her.

"You look so much like your mother." He stammered.

Victoria frowned, she considered that statement offensive but she decided to let it slide.

"Are you looking for Jake? Or maybe Kaleb?" Victoria asked.

The seemed like he was searching for the words to say, however, Victoria didn't have the time nor the patience to listen.

"Don't worry about him daughter." A voice hissed.

Victoria gulped. Her mom. She turned to see her mother standing in front of her, her arms crossed. She wore a magenta-colored pantsuit that looked strangely authoritative.

"Janelle." Coach Kirby said sternly.

"Mo, stay away from my daughter." Victoria's mother hissed.

With that she grabbed Victoria by her arm and pulled her away. "What were you doing talking to him?"

"He came up to me, mom. What are you even doing here? Don't you have a life to save or a makeup brand to market?" Victoria sighed.

After her mother's last visit she was hoping she wouldn't have to see her till Spring Break. However, her mother stood right in front of her, a disappointed glare on her face.

"This is a great event for publicity. I called the paparazzi to have them photograph you and Matt together." She said.

Victoria had forgotten that she was fake dating Matt. She was too busy focusing on school to remember to keep up the charade.

"Where is Matthew?" Her mother asked.

"Probably avoiding you," Victoria said.

Her mother did not seem amused by her comment. "You're lucky I don't slap the black off you."

"I'm petrified mother," Victoria said sarcastically.

Her eyes wandered to Matt. He was angrily marching out of the hallway where Sarah's picture was. Sarah was running behind him. Well at least trying to run as fast as she could in heels.

"Wait Matt!" Sarah called.

"You don't have to say anything. I know the meaning of that picture. It was about me wasn't it." Matt said.

The rest of their words were lost to Victoria as the DJ turned the music up. Victoria shrugged and turned to her mother.

"Seems like he's busy," Victoria said.

"No one is ever to busy for you, dear daughter." She said. "Go convince him to come back."

"What's the point of any of this? Just so you and Captain Union get more press? You guys are already in the top ten heroes list. You should be happy. Can't you just let Matt and I live the lives we want?" Victoria frowned.

Her mother scowled. "Of course, you don't see the importance. Do you know how much this means to me! After everything, I went through having you! To be able to prove that I was able to be a hero despite my past! Not everything is about you Victoria." Her mother hissed.

"That's the problem! It's never about me!" Victoria snapped.

She didn't realize she was yelling until the rest of the people in the art gallery turned to look at her. Victoria shook her head.

"You don't care about what I want or my dreams. I didn't even want to be a hero! You're forcing me to do all of this! I'm not the selfish one, it's you Janelle Crown! I'm not letting you shame me anymore; you're done as my mother." Victoria yelled.

She growled and grabbed her silver purse and was prepared to leave when she felt her mother's hand around her arm.

"Don't forget Victoria, you're going to need me more than I'm going to need you. You'll come to your senses and when you do I'll be waiting for your apology." Her mother said.

Victoria frowned. Was that really all her mother got from that conversation?

"You can keep the last name Crown. I don't want it anymore." Victoria said.

Victoria yanked her arm away from her mother and marched off.


Maryanne

Maryanne watched the exchange between Victoria and her mother in shock. She felt bad for the girl. It must be so hard to constantly prove yourself to a person who always wanted more.

"I should go talk to her." Maryanne said to Alexander.

"Of course. I understand." Alexander smiled.

Maryanne nodded. She was glad that Alexander was a good guy. He was so understanding. Maryanne walked over to the exit, in hopes of reaching Victoria however her mother stepped in front of her.

"You caused enough problems Maryanne Isla." Janelle hissed.

Maryanne frowned. "What have I done?"

"My daughter was fine until she met you. You put all these foolish ideas about rebellion in her head." She snapped.

Maryanne gulped. Every time she saw Victoria's mother it seemed like she only got scarier.

"Have you considered that maybe I'm not the problem? Maybe it's just that all her life people have told her who she is supposed to be, and now that she's on her own she doesn't know who she is. Can you imagine living for fifteen years and not knowing who you are what you want?" Maryanne asked.

"I am a good mother!" Janelle yelled.

There was anger and a slight hint of desperation in her voice. "I'm a good mother." She repeated.

Maryanne jumped in fear. She cleared her throat. "I'm not saying you aren't. I'm just saying Victoria needs space to figure out who she is. Maybe she doesn't want to be seen as Victoria Crown, and instead just wants to be Victoria."

Janelle shook her head. "After how hard I worked, she should be grateful." She sighed.

She glared at Maryanne. "Don't worry Maryanne, I already know how to take care of you."

Maryanne gulped. "What do you mean by that?"

"I called a certain friend of yours and let him know where you were." She smiled.

Maryanne's face fell. "What?"

The polaroid. She knew that he found her. She just didn't know how."Why would you do that?"

"You think I'm going to just stand by and let you destroy my daughter? If I can't take care of you, he will." She smirked.

She grabbed her cocktail and smirked. "Have a fun night."


Lex

"Hey, Lex." Faith called.

Lex stopped and turned to see his best friend. He widened his eyes in shock. She looked nice. Not that was unusual. But Faith had more of natural beauty, she usually strayed from all the makeup and the frilly dresses. However tonight her hair was tied back into a slick braid and she wore a golden dress. Mascara was carefully applied around her eyes.

"You look great." He said.

She blushed. "Really you think so? Fouzia helped with the outfit." She chuckled.

"Lex, I actually have something really important to tell you. Earlier today I saw-"

"Have you seen Sarah?" He asked.

Faith's face fell. "Are you serious?"

"What are you talking about?" Lex asked.

She growled and crossed her arms. Lex gulped, making Faith angry was just like flipping a switch. He could practically see the smoke coming out of her nostrils.

"I'm dressed up nice and I'm trying to have an important conversation with you, about something really serious going on." Faith said.

"I totally get that Faith. I'm not saying we can't talk. I was just asking if you had seen Sarah, after all, it's her night. I just wanted to make sure she knew that she did a good job." Lex frowned.

Lex wasn't sure what in his sentence made Faith explode, but soon bone blades started to pop out of her arms.

"You really don't get it, do you? Ever since we got to Morning Star, you've practically been ignoring me. All you do is hang out with Sarah, and when we hang out all you do is talk about Sarah." Faith said.

"I do not." Lex frowned.

"When's the last time we hung out, and you didn't find a way to work her into the conversation? When's the last time you asked me how I was feeling?" Faith snapped.

Lex shook his head. He never realized how much he had been hurting Faith.

"Faith let me explain," Lex said.

"Forget about it, Lex. Like you said its Sarah's night. Why don't you go chase her? That's all you've been doing lately, anyway." Faith sighed.

With that she walked away, leaving Lex alone and confused.


Matt

"I don't understand why you're angry?" Sarah called.

Matt came to the art show in hopes that he could win Sarah back. His hopes were shattered when he saw the photo.

"I'm not angry." Matt sighed.

"You were pouting like a baby when you saw my painting, while everyone else was congratulating me?

"I'm not angry at you. I'm angry that's how you see me. As an ominous monster always hurting you." Matt said.

Sarah crossed her arms. "What makes you think the painting is about you?"

"Of course it is." Matt frowned.

"Fine it is, but can you blame me, Matt?" Sarah asked.

Matt sighed. He couldn't blame her. That was the problem. All of this was for nothing.

"Don't worry about it, Sarah. We don't have to talk about it. I'll leave you alone." Matt said.

She looked like she was at a loss of words. She sighed.

"I'm not sure what you want me to say," Sarah said.

Soon his limo pulled up. Matt looked back at the blond. "I don't expect you to say anything."

With that, he opened his door and climbed into his car.

"How was your evening, Mr. Freeman?" The driver asked.

"Shitty. Take me back to the academy sir." Matt said.

"As you wish." The driver said.

His head was pounding like someone was slamming a hammer into his brain. His heart ached like someone was digging a knife deep into it.

Four Years Ago:

"So when people ask you what happened, what are you going to say?" His father asked.

Matt gulped. "That I believe my father and will always stand by him."

His father smiled. "Good."

The two sat in the living room. His father had the TV cranked to the loudest setting to drown out the protesters. A fourth woman came forward. Just like the others, she claimed Captain Union raped her. Matt shook his head at the thought. Who would make up such a cruel thing?

"Dad, what their saying isn't true right?" Matt asked.

"Of course not." His father scowled.

He got on one knee and looked Matt in the eye. "I'm a good person Matt. I would never do anything to hurt anyone."

Matt nodded. "Of course."

Suddenly he thought of his mother. He thought of their fights. The sounds of his father's fists as they made contact with her skull.

The screaming from the protesters got louder.

"I'm not perfect." His father admitted. "But should I be crucified for a couple of mistakes?"

Matt shook his head. "No."

Now:

"I hate him," Matt said aloud.

"I hate my father." He said to himself.

He thought of Kari. He thought of the other women who accused his father of horrendous deeds. He always assumed his father was right. He never hurt people and if he did it was never intentionally. He was a good person. However, Captain Union was not a good person. Matt's mother must have known that.

Matt's stomach felt sick. That's why she left. She was just like those other girls. Matt wasn't born out of love. He was born out of violence and cruelty. All his father did was hurt, people. Especially women. For someone who claimed to be one of the strongest heroes, why hurt people that he would consider weaker than?

However, it wasn't his father's actions that made Matt hate him. It was the fact that his father had turned him into a monster. His father had made him just like him.

He looked into his reflection through the glass he wanted to scream. He was disgusted with himself. How could he have let himself fall this far? How could he let himself hurt people he cared about? His phone buzzing pulled him out of his thoughts.

He frowned and pulled out his phone. It was a text from Faith.

Faith: I'm in.


Jake

Jake grunted as he punched the punching bag. It felt good to hit something. How could he have been so stupid tonight? He was willing to embarrass himself and give Sarah those roses when she obviously had feelings for Lex.

Jake grunted in frustration and swung his fist again. The chain holding the bag up snapped, causing the bag to fall on the floor. He groaned, now he didn't have something to hit.

How could he let himself fall for Sarah Smith? His roommate's ex-girlfriend. Or current girlfriend. Their relationship status was confusing to the boy.

"Thanks a lot, Jake." A voice called.

Jake turned to see Victoria watching him. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I came here to work out, of course, I can't now because you destroyed the punching bag," Victoria said.

Jake rolled his eyes. "You'll be fine snowflake."

Victoria sat down on the bench. "Bad night? You're acting even more of a dick than usual."

"Well, your bitchy-ness makes up for it." Jake scoffed.

"I'm flattered," Victoria said.

He looked down at her arm and was surprised to see a purple bruise around her arm.

"What happened to you?" Jake asked.

"You're not the only one having a sucky night. Tonight I was just doing what I do best, disappointing my mother." Victoria sighed.

Jake chuckled. "Are you serious? You're like every parent's wet dream."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Victoria frowned.

"You're smart, polite, ambitious, I don't understand how anyone could be disappointed with you." Jake frowned.

She sighed. "Says the person who's higher than me on the class rankings."

"The class rankings are bullshit. Ms. Morningstar is probably just using it to try and give us a motive to all kill each other." Jake said.

Victoria smiled weakly. "I guess you're right. So what happened to you? Why was your night so sucky?"

Jake blushed. "Unrequited love."

"Was it your charming personality that scared her away?" Victoria snorted.

"Funny, you're one to talk." Jake snickered.

"Why is that?" Victoria asked.

Jake looked around. "Instead of being with your friends, you're in a gym alone with me. Kind of says a lot about you."

"Well I would be working out, but as I previously stated, you destroyed the punching bag," Victoria said.

Jake smirked. "Sorry about that."

"Besides, jokes on you I don't have any friends," Victoria said solemnly.

"Is that why you're hanging out with me right now? Here I was thinking it was because you thought I was a stud." Jake said.

Victoria rolled her eyes. "Stud? Where are you from, an 80's rom-com?"

Jake chuckled. "Admit it you were into me."

Victoria paused. She turned to face Jake and looked at him carefully. Almost as if she was studying him. After a couple of seconds, she seemed satisfied and said, "You're not repulsive."

"I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me," Jake said with mock flattery.

What happened next surprised him, Victoria leaned in and kissed him. Jake's body went stiff as a board as the girl straddled him and reached her hands under his shirt. How did she move so quickly? Was she a ninja?

Jake pulled away, gasping for air. "What are you doing?"

She sighed. "I feel like shit. You feel like shit. Let's feel like shit together."

Jake coughed in surprise. Was she serious? She was Victoria Crown, he always pictured her as an uptight princess. Yet the girl he was seeing right now was completely different.

"Please don't make this a thing. Are you in or not?" Victoria asked.

Jake smiled giddily. He was going to lose his virginity. Granted he never expected it to be in the gym, but beggars couldn't be choosers. He pushed a braid out of her face and leaned in to kiss her.

"I'm in," Jake said.

"No strings attached," Victoria said.

"No strings attached," Jake repeated.


No student file today. Sorry guys, I felt like this chapter already had enough going on. Also, AnonymousAk made a discord server, in case anyone wants to go on there to talk. The invite is: xfEDA23