Second Wind
"Ok, it's working now."
The beginning of the recording captures Bluey's 14-year-old voice as she leans forward, setting Mackenzie's phone against a platform. She sits back down next to Mackenzie at the cafeteria table, with the gray cinder blocks behind them.
Southern Stars Middle School*
Lunchtime*
4 years ago*
"Hi!" Bluey greeted the camera with a slight waving hand. "I'm Bluey Christine Heeler."
"And I'm Mack Tāne Border Collie!"
She snickered and leaned towards Mackenzie., "Your real name," she whispered.
Mackenzie sighed and corrected himself. "Mackenzie Māriri Border Collie"
"And this," Bluey continued talking to the camera, "is our project for Professor Bristol, our time capsule assignment!"
"Yeah!" Mackenzie added, with the same excitement as her. "This is our message to our future selves in six years, when we are about to graduate from high school."
"Yeah. So right now, we are in the cafeteria where we eat-"
"HEY! GET BACK HERE!"
Coco's faint shout from off-camera sounded off, causing the duo to look up and beyond the camera with curious, shocked expressions and raised ears.
"I'm gonna step in." Bluey stood up and moved to the side away from the camera, leaving a confused, worried Mackenzie behind.
"What do you want?" Judo's young voice came from behind the camera, which was still aimed at Mackenzie as he looked over it.
"To talk," Coco said menacingly.
"Not interested."
"Oh, so you don't wanna run your mouth now!?" Indy's voice was heard too, with a tone of anger.
"I don't have to."
"Girls, please," Bluey's voice was audible, pleading to the three girls.
"No, no, no. Let's talk now, bitch," Coco insulted.
"Sorry, I'm not interested in talking with the wannabe model and the ugly hippie."
"WHY DON'T YOU SAY THAT TO OUR FACE, BITCH?!" the poodle exclaimed, directly threatening Judo.
"I don't wanna be close to your ugly face," Judo underhandedly retorted to Coco, sounding like she was about to walk away.
"Go, talk, to THEM!" Honey's irritated voice roared.
The camera caught Mackenzie's eyes broadening in terror.
"Waitwaitwait"
"BITCH!" Indy screamed furiously.
"YOU ARE DEAD!" Coco added, her voice equally enraged.
"NO, NOOOOOO!" Bluey's terrified voice sounded.
"BITCH FIGHT!"
With that, the whole cafeteria exploded in cheers and screams of morbid support for the girls. Mackenzie can only react by grinding his teeth and closing his eyes sporadically at every angry insult and punch from Coco and Indy, every grunt of pain and tussle from Judo, every desperate shout and grunt from Bluey to make them stop, and every remark from the spectators like "Punch her harder!" "Break her teeth!" "Hit her with the elbow!" "She deserves it!"
The recording caught Mackenzie with wide-open eyes, desperately shaking his head, as if something was approaching him. "Nonononononono…" Mackenzie lunged forward to reach his cell phone to safeguard it and hit the red button to stop recording…
… just in time for the last frame to catch Judo's white back being slammed on top of Mackenzie's back fur… just as a heated Indy struck her in the face with her right fist.
Southern Stars High School*
Present day*
Restrooms*
The water somehow… emerges from the faucet with aggression.
A characteristic of the school's restroom that caught Mackenzie's attention when he used the sink for the first time three years ago.
But today, the water perfectly reflects what he felt at that moment.
His teeth grind. He grunts in anger under his breath as the water pours onto his hands, forming a cup to bring the water to his face to clean off the leftover cream from the pie that had hit him during the food fight moments earlier.
When the food fight was over, many students went to the restrooms and cleaned themselves up. The Terriers were fast and managed to secure a male restroom for the club, allowing Mackenzie, Rusty, Jack, Pretzel, Bingo, Winton, the Terriers, Banjo, Felix, Buddy, Juniper, Sadie, and Harley to clean themselves up before making their way to their next class.
"WE GOTTA BEAT HIS ASS NOW!" Jack shouts from behind Mackenzie, his voice cutting through the steady water drip from his soaked fur into the sink. The hum of running faucets fills the restroom, echoing around him.
"Jack…" Rusty says with a pleading voice
"I SAW HIM THROWING THAT GRAPE TO YOUR TEAMMATE!" Jack keeps shouting, "HE STARTED THE FOOD FIGHT!"
"Let's not be rash."
"RASH!?"
Mackenzie turned his head to his left at Sadie's shout. She was cleaning the food that had gotten on her with the sink water. "AREN'T YOU THE ONE THAT SAID YOU ALMOST BEAT UP A GUY FOR STEPPING IN YOUR STUPID LITTLE FIELD!?"
"Different situa-"
"IT'S A STUPID LITTLE FIELD, YOU FUCKING HYPOCRITE," Sadie shouts again before returning to face the sink and continue.
"RUSTY!" Jack shouts to get Rusty's attention, "IF WE DON'T STOP LOGAN HE IS GONNA KEEP THIS UP FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR."
"Jack is right," Banjo wisely says, as Felix stands beside him at the sink in the back of the restroom. "If we don't stop Logan and the Poski brothers, they'll bother us for the rest of the year and beyond."
"Listen, I understand." Rusty stands his ground with a soft tone of understanding. "I hate Logan as much as you all do, but we can't turn this school into a battleground. We've already gotten into so much trouble with Tommy."
"Ughhh"
Mackenzie raises his head and looks to the ceiling, annoyed.
It's been over a week since he spent time with Bluey at the cinema, and also to the fact that she told him she sees him as a friend, the following days were hard but expected. Cry himself to sleep, beating himself up figuratively about how useless he is and barely talking to his friends. At least until he got 'better' enough before the beginning of classes.
He was never an aggressive guy towards others. Still, it's only so far he can ignore Logan and the bullying that has been stuck with him for so long, especially after figuring out from Jack that he started the food fight and got him into the restroom covered in cream pie.
Combine Logan, plus Bluey telling him she sees him as a friend, and then.
You get a pissed off Border Collie.
He sighs and finally turns around to face Rusty, who is standing in the middle of the restroom.
"We gotta beat his ass" Mackenzie finally says determinately and with anger.
"WHAT?" Rusty shakes his head back, astonished as Jack looks at Mackenzie, nodding rapidly
"Friendly reminder," Winton makes his presence known from a wall he is leaning into with crossed arms. "Last time you were in a fight, you almost got killed."
Mackenzie unknowingly puts a hand around his neck as an imaginary sense of doom and pain appears there, but he answers to the bulldog immediately, "That's just HIM. We are talking about Logan; he won't get away from all of us."
"Yeah…" Pretzel talks, leaning against the wall next to the door. "But Bailey, Diamond, and the rest will protect him."
"...And whoever is sympathetic towards him," Harley spoke, also cleaning herself with the sink water next to Sadie.
"Yes…" Rusty speaks, "It's going to be a battleground, and I don't want to get you guys into that."
"What if…" Jack speaks up. "We do wanna get into that, huh?"
"Emmmm," Rusty looks away from Jack uncomfortably.
"Then Bluey is gonna rip your heart out!"
All the unoccupied dogs turn their heads to one of the stalls where Bingo's voice rang out, "I'm pretty sure she is gonna agree with Rusty and not have you guys get into a full-on brawl."
"So what are we going to do then?" Jack says, indignantly toward the stall. "We can't allow Logan to do what he wants to us!"
"We are gonna humiliate them!"
*Whoosh!*
The roar of the flushing toilet fills the restroom as Bingo finally steps out of the stall. Mackenzie and the other dogs look at her, confused and with bewildered expressions.
…
"What?" Bingo says, noticing everyone's expressions. "I just cleaned myself off and flushed down the tissues."
"You better," Felix quickly quips before looking back at the sink to continue cleaning himself.
"Oh, shut up, you pencil," Bingo quips back before turning her attention to Rusty and Jack.
"Ok…what are you planning, Bingo?" Jack says, leaning slightly towards Bingo with both hands on his hips
"So…We all wanna beat up Logan."
"Yes," Jack agrees
"But we don't wanna get into a huge brawl."
"Correct," Rusty agrees
"But we wanna hurt them."
"..." Mackenzie rotates his eyes to think before looking back at Bingo to say, "Yes."
"So…let's just, challenge Logan and his friends to a dodgeball game after school tomorrow." Bingo finally advises, arms lightly extended like a car vendor. "If we humiliate them all, they are not going to attempt anything else."
"Ummmm." Mackenzie, Rusty, and Jack put a hand under their mouths, thinking. Bingo's plan checkmarks all the things they want to accomplish against Logan, so after a few minutes of looking at each other to ensure they are on the same page, the three dogs finally nod affirmatively.
"Pretzel," Rusty calls him, turning to him. "Tell the terriers to locate Logan and his group and challenge him to a dodgeball game after school tomorrow. Knowing them, they won't back down."
"Sure thing, Cap." Pretzel shows his thumb up and exits through the door to talk to the Terriers, making guard outside.
Rusty, Jack, and Bingo look at each other affirmatively, as Mackenzie sighs and looks at himself in the mirror with a worrying gaze. His heart starts beating, and his hands and body unknowingly shake.
He suggested, alongside Jack, to hurt Logan.
That means he is gonna be fully involved in the dodgeball battle
Which means…This is going to be his first time actively hurting someone…Since the "Incident"
Tomorrow is going to be a long day…
The next day*
The sun's rays gradually envelop the school's outer walls and rooftops, infusing them with warmth and light, much like the buzz surrounding the dodgeball game.
As expected, Logan and his friends accept the challenge, and it doesn't take long for news to spread among the rest of the students, who spend the entire day debating whom to support. Some openly back Logan, while others subtly support the Glasshouse club.
RINGGGGGGGGG
But the speculations come to an end with the final bell. The students not involved in the drama make their way out of the school, while those more engaged head to the back field to witness "the showdown to end all showdowns."
Mackenzie walks out of the mathematics classroom, blending in with the rest of the class. He is the only club member in that specific class, but luckily for him, none of the bullies are there.
His stomach churns with nerves, anxiety, and anger; it is finally time to join his friends in the dodgeball battle to humiliate Logan and his group once and for all, hoping to put an end to the harassment that followed him and his friends all those years in high school.
As he makes his way through the halls, he is unexpectedly joined by Buddy and Jean-Luc, who position themselves on either side of him as he continues walking. Buddy glances briefly at Mackenzie before looking at Jean-Luc to ask, "Hey, are you going to see the dodgeball battle?"
"Nah," Jean-Luc replies in a friendly manner. "I'm going to hang out with the exchange students and Tommy. He said he's going to get pizza for us."
"Oh, that sounds delicious."
"Yeah, it's the perfect opportunity to meet them," Jean-Luc says with hope
"Well, have fun with them," Mackenzie says in a neutral tone. Trying to end the conversation
"And good luck in your battle," Jean-Luc wishes him with an air of camaraderie.
"Well, I've got to go study with Missy. See ya, guys," Buddy announces, peeling away from Mackenzie and Jean-Luc.
"See ya, Buddy/Bauddy," Mackenzie and Jean-Luc say goodbye as Buddy changes his course and heads to his meeting point with Missy.
After Buddy disappears in the sea of students, Jean-Luc finally announces with one fist up, "Im going to the principal's office. See you later, Mack."
Mackenzie comprehends what the lab wants to do and clasps his fist with him, a wordless sight of solidarity. "Yup, see you later, Luke."
With that, Jean-Luc turns on his heel and heads toward the principal's office, while Mackenzie continues on his path to the indoor court in silence. The weight of the upcoming dodgeball match is still on his shoulders and mind.
Walking to the court …to the battle zone, makes Mackenzie wander in his thoughts as his feet continue on autopilot.
No matter what he tells himself or believes, Mackenzie Māriri Border Collie was born to New Zealand parents in Wellington, surrounded by the Māori community. Although his family moved to Brisbane when he was 2, Mel and Fozzie still proudly embrace their Māori roots…
One of those roots…the Haka. A ceremonial dance used for special events, like weddings or graduations.
Or…Pre-battle ritual.
While growing up, Mackenzie was never really interested in his parents' Māori culture; instead, he learned and adopted Australian culture, like Bluey and the rest of his friends. He even took a few Kendo or racing classes to ignore his parents' culture, but he never managed to stay in those classes for long before returning to his video games in his room.
But somehow, without even wanting to, the lyrics of a haka song resounded in his head. Convincing him to keep walking towards the back of the school, filling him up with courage and determination to throw himself into battle alongside his friends.
And with smacks of hands on the body and the stomps of the haka in his mind, Mackenzie let go and sing, whispering.
Ka mate, ka mate! Ka ora, ka ora
Ka mate, ka mate! Ka ora, ka ora
Tēnei te tangata pūhuruhuru
Nāna nei i tiki mai whakawhiti te rā
Ā, upane! ka upane!
Ā, upane, ka upane, whiti te rā!
Without paying attention to his surroundings, Mackenzie arrived at the indoor basketball court in the back of the school—a place usually reserved for PE classes, sports matches, or rainy day hangouts. But for this occasion, it was a battlefield.
A gathering of students of all breeds and sizes filled the bleachers and sidelines, buzzing with chatter before the showdown. Logan's group was clearly stationed on one side of the court in a tight huddle, while Mackenzie's friends were gathered on the opposite side, making final preparations.
Mackenzie weaved through the crowd, dodging dogs left and right until he finally reached the safety of his group. Jack was stretching his muscles alongside the terrier brothers, Banjo was shadow boxing to rile himself up, Harley sat cross-legged on the floor in silent meditation, and Judo was deep in conversation with Indy and Coco—the two girls she had once bullied but since made amends with. The three shared an embrace for good luck.
Rusty called out with authority, his voice echoing off the walls like a coach in a locker room. "Ok! So it will be Jack, Judo, Winton, Adam, Joe, Dan, Banjo, Felix, Jasper W, J, Harley, and Mack. The rest stay back and help if necessary!"
Everyone nodded, focused, and ready.
"ALRIGHT! LET'S GET THEM!"
"Yeah!"
"Let's go, team!"
"Time to win this!"
"Charge!"
"We've got this!"
The Glasshouse club surged forward across the polished wooden floor, moving as one unit toward the center court. Mackenzie followed just behind, his heart pounding like a drum, fists clenched—ready to receive pain and return it to his bullies.
"HOLD UP!"
Bluey suddenly burst through the group, stopping Mackenzie in his tracks with both hands on his shoulders. "What do you think you're doing!?" she demanded, a mix of anger and disbelief in her voice.
"Ending this," Mackenzie said stiffly, body tense.
"In a dodgeball battle!?" Bluey shot back, confused and frustrated, tightening her grip. "You're gonna get hurt! It won't change anything."
"Then at least it'll send the message," Mackenzie replied, unshaken.
"This is not worth it, Mackenzie," Bluey pleaded, her urgency growing. "I don't want to see you get hurt."
"Diamond is in, participating."
Bluey's eyes widened at the mention of her archrival. Her mouth opened as if to argue, then shut in bitter frustration. "Son of a—ughhh…"
She sighed deeply, releasing Mackenzie's shoulders before stepping beside him to join the others heading toward the court.
Together, Mackenzie, Bluey, and their friends arrived at center court, stopping behind a line of red and blue dodgeballs waiting for war. Logan's group approached from the opposite side, lining up to face them—13 students squaring off against 13. Students in the bleachers leaned in, some whispering, others recording the moment with their phones. The tension in the gym was thick and electric.
Off to the side near the scorer's table, Lucky and Chucky sat with headphones on, preparing themselves at a makeshift commentary station with a phone acting as their recorder.
"Alright," Chucky said as he adjusted his headset. "This is gonna be awesome."
"Mmhmm," Lucky hummed without enthusiasm, his expression low but his focus firm for the dream he chased.
In front of them, a female Black Labrador with white patches on her face and chest raised a whistle to her mouth and blew sharply.
Fweeeeeet!
The sharp sound echoed through the gym, cutting through the crowd noise and drawing all attention to her.
"Alright, everyone, listen up!" she called, lowering the whistle and scanning the court. "We're playing dodgeball today, and I want a clean, fair game. Here are the rules!"
"Each team starts with three balls in the center. When I blow the whistle again, you rush forward to grab them. Hit someone, they're out. Catch a ball, you get to bring one teammate back in."
"Dodging, jumping, and rolling? All fair game. But step out of bounds, and you're out."
"Got it!?"
"Yeah!"
"Sure!"
"Let's do this!"
Both groups responded in sync, nodding with fierce resolve. The Labrador sighed, glanced at both sides, then raised the whistle again.
The thirteen representatives of the Glasshouse club crouched into position, feet ready to explode off the floor, eyes locked forward. Mackenzie's heart pounded with each breath, the glossy court reflecting the intensity written on every face.
With tension soaring and the crowd dead quiet…
No one noticed the silver sedan pulling up just outside the gym's emergency exit doors…
School offices*
The lights on the ceiling perfectly illuminate the room of the front desk, only the presses of the keyboard sounding off.
Tommy the Chinook was leaning forward and behind one of his front desk employees, checking some documentation on the computer. He is wearing his typical principal suit and tie, long casual black pants, and a walkie-talkie on his belt.
As he and the assistant's hands were glued to the computer.
The door of the office swings open, allowing an adult Dingo colour shadow to go in awkwardly, holding three pizza boxes with both hands, two big ones and one smaller one.
Tommy raises his gaze and notices the Dingo approaching him, "Hey! The hero of the hour!"
The Dingo finally puts the pizza boxes on top of the counter and says, "Tommy Chinook?" to which Tommy responds with nods, "Here are your pizzas."
"Awesome mate." Tommy puts his hands under the pile of boxes and drags it out of the desk to hold it. Tommy turns his body around to prepare to walk off, but his eyes land on the Dingo, and in a split second, he recognizes him. "Hey…You are the Dingo who always delivers here, what was your name again?"
"Alfie," The adult Dingo answers proudly.
"Well, Thanks again, Alfie. I will make sure to put an extra tip in the app."
"Don't worry, im just doing my job," Alfie says humbly.
"Well, see ya next time, Alfie." Tommy, farewell, starting to walk deeper into the office
"See ya Tommy," Alfie said, turning around to walk out the door and back to his grey sedan.
Tommy makes his way through the small hall of the office, passing by small rooms used for office work like accounting or managing the school, all while the smell of pizza reaches his nostrils, making him walk faster.
The yellow Chinook finally arrived at his office, and with his feet, he knocks on the door three times. It didn't take long for Alice to open the door to let the principal in
"Pizza is here," Tommy announces as he steps in.
"HOORAY!" scattered around the principal's office, Jean-Luc, Sebastian, Dalilah, and Kolina celebrate with extended arms, as Tommy leaves the boxes on his desk.
"Alright, what do we got here?" The Swedish girl, Kolina, steps towards the desk and opens the small pizza on top of the two pizza boxes…only to find something disgusting for her "HEY! Who got pineapple pizza!?"
…
…
…
Alice and Jean-Luc turned around, facing away from Kolina with guilty faces.
"Jävla kanadensare" Kolina with a discusting frown on her face
"Hey, at least it's just one small pizza for them," Tommy says as he moves the small pizza aside to open one of the big pizzas with pepperoni. "We've got all this for ourselves."
"Pff" Kolina blew a quick raspberry before picking a slice of pepperoni pizza. "I can let this paganism go for just today."
School indoor basketball court*
"Everyone ready?"
The black and white Labrador referee shouts, both teams ready to start, she nervously moves her hand with the whistle near her mouth.
The whistle hangs in the air, frozen, like the last breath before a storm.
Fweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!
"AND THEY'RE OFF!" Chucky's voice explodes through his headset, nearly jumping out of his seat. "WE ARE UNDERWAY!"
"The Glasshouse Club and Logan's crew waste no time charging in," Lucky adds, his voice calmer, but his tone sharp and focused. "Look at that explosion off the line! Banjo and Felix sprint like rockets, diving into the center court and snatching the first dodgeballs with wild energy."
"BANJO'S GOT ONE! FELIX TOO!" Chucky shouts. "AND—OOOH—JASPER J SLID STRAIGHT INTO A BALL, BUT ALSO A KNEE TO THE FACE—WE'RE GOOD, HE'S GOOD, HE'S BACK UP!"
"Looks like Logan's team is sticking to a loose formation," Lucky notes. "Smart move. Bailey and the Poski twins are watching the field like hawks."
"Meanwhile, Harley just matrixed under a flying ball from Derek!" Chucky cackles. "I swear she's levitating out here!"
"Joe from the Terriers fires—BOOM!—and he nails Chad right in the chest! That's one out for Logan's crew!"
"AND HERE COMES DAN—HE'S WIIIIINDING UP—BIG THROW—WHOA!" Chucky yells. "THAT'S A DODGEBALL CANNON!"
"Too wide," Lucky says calmly, arms crossed. "Missed by an inch. Should've aimed lower."
Back on the court, the crowd roars as Winton dives to catch a ball—but it bounces off his paws and skids away.
"Close, Winton, CLOSE," Chucky groans. "Almost had a game-changer there."
"No one from the core four is out yet," Lucky mutters, eyes flicking between the chaos. "Bluey's hanging back, reading the field. Rusty's centered, protecting the flanks. Bailey's commanding her side with sharp calls. Logan… just smirked."
"Oh, I hate that smirk," Chucky spits, slapping the desk lightly. "It's like he thinks he's in a movie."
"Both teams are testing the waters," Lucky says. "Fast pace, but no one's gotten reckless yet. They're saving their aces for later."
"AND SPEAKING OF ACES—JUDO JUST CAUGHT A BALL FROM BLAINE!" Chucky cheers, practically vibrating in his seat. "AND THAT MEANS—ADAM'S BACK IN, BABY!"
"Momentum shift," Lucky says, finally cracking a grin. "Glasshouse is building heat."
The students in the bleachers erupt into chants and cheers, waving their arms, screaming names—phones are out, the recording lights glow.
"OOH! AND THERE GOES SADIE—HEADSHOT BY MILES! SHE'S OUT!" Chucky yells with sympathy. "That's one less for the Glasshouse Club!"
"She'll walk it off," Lucky says. "Sadie's taken harder hits from the vending machine."
"THE COURT IS A WARZONE, LUCKY!"
"Yeah," Lucky nods slowly. "But Bluey, Rusty, Bailey, and Logan are not moving yet. They're waiting."
"Oh-ho-ho," Chucky leans forward, wide-eyed. "And when they do…"
"Then it won't be dodgeball," Lucky says with an edge in his voice. "It'll be war."
Principal offices*
"Sooo"
Jean-Luc speaks up, holding a small slice of pineapple pizza while sitting on a chair in the corner of the room. "You guys met each other in Dubai before coming here?"
"Yeah, yeah, pretty much." All three exchange students agree and nod, each holding a pizza slice.
"You should've seen Kolina's face when I first met her. She was looking at a menu in Arabic, trying to understand it," Sebastian tells.
"It was a long flight from Stockholm," Kolina recalls, covering her face with her other hand. "And the food on the plane wasn't that good, so I was really itching for something good. I just rushed to the first restaurant I found."
"Same thing with me," Sebastian starts to explain. "I was really hungry when my plane landed, and because I was in Dubai, I really wanted to eat a döner."
"Shawarma," Dalilah interrupts.
"Shawarma, yeah," Sebastián and Kolina say simultaneously. Snapping their head to Dalilha
"I really wanted a shawarma," Sebastián says while glancing sideways at Dalilah, who looks away from him with sass before he looks back at Jean-Luc. "So I walked to that restaurant and found Kolina there. Of course, I didn't know she was one of the girls who would go to this school, but I knew she was an exchange student."
"So why did you stand next to me?" Kolina remarks, eliciting wide eyes from Jean-Luc and Alice.
"Because…" Sebastian awkwardly looks away while trying to come up with an answer. "...I wanted to meet new people, and seeing your Swedish flag patch on your backpack really sparked my interest."
"Huh?" Kolina asks, looking at Sebastian with a confused expression before saying "Okay," and taking another bite of her pizza.
"So what happens next?" Alice asks, picking up another slice of pineapple pizza.
"I came into the picture," Dalilah happily adds, grabbing a slice of cheese pizza. "I also wanted to eat something after my flight, so I walked to the restaurant and found them looking at the menu. I knew they needed help, and since they were from Europe, I started speaking to them."
"When we started talking," Kolina shares, swinging her slice side to side, "It was really awkward to understand each other, but Dalilah helped us order shawarmas. It was when we sat down to eat that we figured out we were going to the same school in Australia."
"Huh," Tommy interjects while holding a pepperoni pizza near his mouth, "What a coincidence."
"But," Alice says, "Why didn't you guys use your cell phones to translate? I suppose it could have been easier than just looking at the menu."
Sebastian, Dalilah, Kolina, Tommy, and Jean-Luc turn their gazes toward Alice with insulted, lost looks.
"Wow," Jean-Luc says sarcastically. "That is the most intelligent thing I've ever heard in my life from the most beautiful and intelligent being on this planet."
"Thank you!" Alice closes her eyes and leans her head to the side with a starry aura
"You dumb disgusting broad"
Alice snap her eyes open towards Jean-Luc and quickly retorted "Give your balls a tug, you simple minded fuck"
"Hey, hey, hey, hey," Dalilah quickly interrupts Alice and Jean-Luc. "Please, both of you… Words are powerful—don't use them to wound. We are friends, yes?
"Oh," Jean-Luc's eyes widen as he tries to explain himself. "This is how we show love."
"Love?" Dalilah reacts, confused.
"Yeah," Jean-Luc shifts his determined gaze to the Eskimo. "Alice!"
"!"
"We are teammates, we are brothers," Jean-Luc leans towards Alice, "I would go to the wall for you."
"Yeah"
"Are you my sister?"
"I'm your sister."
"Would you go to the wall for me?"
"I would go to the wall for you."
"Then," Jean-Luc turns to Dalilah. "She is allowed to call me a-"
"Fucking piece of- OUW"
A ball struck Jack right in his head as he was crawling over the polished floor of the court, knocking him out cold,
"JACK IS OUT!" Chucky shouts from the commentator's table. "That was a nasty hit from Stan."
"Cmon!" Sadie and Bentley quickly rushed to Jack to drag his immobile body out of the way.
The two girls grunt with effort behind Mackenzie, who holds a ball in his hand and twitches his head in alertness, looking for an opportunity to throw as more of his friends around him throw their balls or get struck by a ball.
Mackenzie finally finds his chance, a banseji wearing an orange hoodie, and throws the ball at him, hitting him right in the face and knocking him out cold.
"Ah!" a Border collie beside the Basenji interjects, "They got Kenny!"
"You bastards!" a male Shiba inu exclaims, but both he and his border Collie friend got hit by two more balls.
Mackenzie unfocused, realizing it was Bluey and Rusty who got Stan and Kyle out. They both look at each other and give an approving nod.
"LOOK OUT!"
Chloe shouts from the sidelines.
But it was too late. A ball hits Bluey right on the shoulder, getting her out.
"HAHAHA!" Diamond mocks from the other side, pointing at her.
"Oh, you were just lucky, you bitch!" Bluey retorts as she walks to the sideline, leaving Mackenzie, Rusty, Bailey, Diamond, and Logan on the court.
"Next time pay attention, you stupid bitch!" Diamond deprecates with one palm next to her mouth as a loudspeaker
"And then there were five," Lucky comments in awe, anxious about what's coming.
"This cannot be good," Chucky comments excitedly, holding one of Lucky's arms. "Who am I kidding? This is absolutely gonna be good for us."
Rusty quickly grabs the ball that got Bluey out and aims it towards one of the dogs. Diamond and Logan quickly notice him and start making erratic moves to throw off Rusty's aim.
After going through many students, Bingo finally shows up on the sidelines, she notices Rusty and Diamond, and screams. "FINISH HER FUCKING HER THE FUCK OFF"
"Language, please." Rusty school her, still aiming towards Diamond and Logan.
"SUCK A COCK!" Bingo shouts
"OW"
Without noticing, Diamond got a ball off the floor and threw it towards Rusty, hitting him in the face and getting him out of the game.
"Ohhhhhhhh," the students on the sideline react.
"Now there are only four." Lucky dropped his head, defeated
"It was nice meeting you, Mack." Chucky makes an awkward expression as he plays with the cord of his headset
Mackenzie, the only dog on his side of the court, stands wide awake and alert at the one versus three situation.
In one situation, it is likely he is not going to get out of there without a ball to his face.
Principal's office*
"So what about you, Jean-Luc?" Kolina asks, eating the crust of her second slice. "How was your trip to get here?"
"It was…" Jean-Luc answers, holding a cup of soda in his hand, he tilts it side to side, thinking of an answer. "Ok…I barely talked to anybody on my way here."
"And my sister?" Alice says with a deadpan frown on her face.
"She was, as expected," Jean-Luc speaks in a sarcastic, light tone, "being the boring old woman."
"Obviously." Alice takes another slice of pizza to her mouth.
"Here's something I don't get," Tommy says, half sitting on the principal's desk and looking at Jean-Luc. "If you were such a good hockey player in Canada, why be an exchange student at this stage of your career?"
"Cause I always wanted to be one," Jean-Luc answers, a glaring shine in his eyes. "Me, being good at hockey was something else; even I dare say I'm 'decent' at hockey."
"What do you mean by 'decent'?" Alice asks, her face scrunched in confusion. "There's a reason people call you 'Quebec's Railgun' or 'The Lord of St. John. '"
"That's irrelevant," Jean-Luc interrupts Alice. "I'm just…a decent hockey player."
Alice, Tommy, Sebastian, Kolina, and Dalilah look at each other with side eyes, a silent understanding of not believing a word Jean-Luc is saying.
"Sureeeeeeeeeeee" All five dogs say at the same time, causing Jean-Luc to frown at them.
"Okay, so," Sebastian takes the initiative. "Why become an exchange student? Why did you want to be one so badly? "
"Because…" Jean-Luc glanced away from Sebastian, thinking, until he finally replied, "I have been to this city before, and I really like it; I wanted to return as an exchange student cuz the tickets from Quebec to Brisbane aren't really cheap."
"Huh? Makes sense," Sebastian dismissed
"What about your friend?" Alice asks out of nowhere, looking around the room," What was her name?... Bluey?"
"Huh!?" Tommy and the exchange students snap their eyes towards Jean-Luc
"Bluey?" Tommy questions, surprised, "Bluey Christine Heeler?"
"Wow! Look at you, Romeo," Sebastian jokes
"Uuuuuuu, this year just got interesting," Kolina also jokes.
"C'mon, guys," Jean-Luc rolls his eyes to the ceiling, annoyed, "Bluey and I are nothing."
"Are you sure about that?" Alice queries, squinting one eyebrow towards Jean-Luc
"Huh?" Jean-Luc leans his head to the side
"You quite literally cross the ocean for her, and yet you say you don't feel anything for her?"
"Because that's the truth," Jean-Luc says determinedly.
"A very flawed truth," Alice keeps on the pressure. "I called you at Southern Stars to set up the classes two days after you landed, and what was the first thing you told me?"
"..." Jean-Luc maintains a serious frown on Alice, as she keeps talking.
"You found her…You care so much about her that you found her in less than two days. Don't you dare say you don't have feelings for her."
"Yeah…" Kolina awkwardly contributes to the conversation. "Guys don't go over an ocean to search for someone they are not in love with."
"I, I, I, I'm not." Jean-Luc stuttered, succumbing to the pressure of being interrogated about Bluey. "I don't, li-like Bluey"
"Sure," Alice rolls her eyes away from Jean-Luc. "continue à te dire que"
"Principal Thompson? Principal Thompson, are you there?"
A female voice sounded off from Tommy's walkie-talkie. He grabs it from his belt and speaks through it.
"Charlotte, Thompson here, what's up?"
School basketball court*
The Border Collie, standing alert with bent knees, faces Diamond, Logan, and Bailey. Diamond, the number one bully of Bluey and Bingo, Logan, his bully ever since he entered middle school many years ago; and Bailey, the one orchestrating the strings of hate.
"Wow," Logan stops being alert to stand straight, without a worry in the world for Mackenzie, "The Border Collie with a girl's name, the pathetic, good for nothing Mackenzie."
"Yeah…" Diamond mimics Logan, also totally not worried about Mackenzie "The useless Collie that has nothing going on"
"Tell us, little bro," Logan leans his upper body forward towards Mackenzie. "Have you been going to your Kendo classes? Huh? Your racing classes even? Have you been doing something productive?"
"Hey, hey." Bailey taps Logan's shoulder slightly. "I know what he was doing."
"What is it?"
"He was busy rubbing himself on his bed the entire summer." Bailey mocks, pointing at him at the verge of laughter, "Wishing he could have a girlfriend one day while watching the hot Heeler of the moment on his cellphone."
"Ohhhhhh," Logan leans his upper body back, on the verge of laughing. "Yeah, that's right, you are such a loser, Mackenzie. You can't do anything meaningful, hahahahaha."
Mackenzie just stands there, receiving the verbal bullying on his feet, hearing Logan, Diamond, Bailey, and many students on the sidelines laughing at him.
"Maybe…" Mackenzie thinks, still with a determined face, "They are right, I have nothing going on, nothing to make me stand out, no sense of drive, of competitiveness, and I haven't confessed to Bluey."
"But…"
Mackenzie's head moves slowly, to allow the corner of his eyes to look at Bluey, her blue fur standing out between the students, like a beacon calling him. Her face is one of worry, highlighting her among the students laughing at him.
The sound of mockery muffles, and Mackenzie only focuses on Bluey's face, expressing her importance to him.
It didn't matter to Mackenzie that the whole school mocked him.
Despite not being a cricket player like Rusty, or conducting his orchestra like Honey, or not being a karateka like Bluey
As long as he has Bluey. His childhood crush and best friend. And all his friends from Glasshouse.
He will be Mackenzie Māriri Border Collie.
The fluffy Border Collie with family from New Zealand.
"I gotta fight, I gotta do this for her… for her and my friends"
Mackenzie feels his blood running fast, the blood of his ancestors Māori, the ones who lived and died in Aotearoa, way before his parents were born.
He feels the duty of his bloodline drugging him, of taking care of his loved ones, of standing fearless against the odds.
His palms shake, not out of fear, but out of power.
He unknowingly stomps his right foot, a way to show he is present.
He sticks his tongue out and widens his eyes, showing a total lack of fear.
The crowd's laughter still echoes, but it no longer reaches Mackenzie's ears.
His heart beat like the drums from his ancestors.
He feels it
The stirring of something ancient.
Something unshakable.
The blood of warriors.
The guardians of Aotearoa.
Stirs within him.
His breathing slows. Not from fear. From focus.
He finally plants his feet with force, generating a powerful stomp that resounded in the court.
"E kore ahau e wehi! Ka tu ahau mo toku whanau!"
Mackenzie shouts in Maori, cutting through the laughter like a blade, putting his right arm over his forehead and his left arm under his mouth.
The air shifts from the joke to the seriousness. Right before Mackenzie shouts, resounding in the court.
"Ka mate! Ka mate! Ka ora! Ka ora!"
His arms swing in rhythm, slapping his chest, his thighs, stomping. Every move is deliberate. Every word is filled with ancient wisdom.
The students on the sideline stare, stunned. Diamond and Bailey blink and look at each other from the corner of their eyes, unsure. Logan just stands straight, with a slight smirk on his face.
Mackenzie's eyes blaze.
Not with hate.
But with mana.
"Ka mate! Ka mate! Ka ora! Ka ora!"
"Tēnei te tangata pūhuruhuru"
"Nāna i tiki mai whakawhiti te rā!"
He glares straight at the bullies, his tongue out, his eyes wide, unblinking. Without showing a drop of fear
"Ā upane! Ka upane! Whiti te rā!"
"Let's finish this," Logan says after Mackenzie is done, quickly picking up a ball from the floor and throwing it towards him.
But the Border Collie, with his blood boiling from duty, notices Logan and the ball coming right at him. He quickly catches the ball with impeccable timing, and as swiftly as he saw it, he throws it back…
Hitting Diamond right in her head.
"Ohhhhh." The student witnesses react in pain
"EAT SHIT, DIAMOND!" Bingo shouts from the sideline, clearly displaying her hatred towards the light blue Heeler
Back in the court
"You are paying for that!" Bailey quickly reaches for a ball and throws it towards Mackenzie,
But the ball is thrown way too slow, allowing Mackenzie to catch it and throw it back to Bailey with force, hitting her right in her chest.
"Owwwwww" Some students react in pain.
"Ohhhhhhhh!" Some students react in awe
"IT'S ALL DOWN TO THIS," Chucky shouts, practically standing up from his seat and a hand on her earpiece, "LOGAN VERSUS MACK, A 1V1 THAT WILL RESOUND IN THE AGES TO COME."
"Cmon, Mack, cmon," Lucky murmurs with both hands together and leaning forward to the point his elbows are on the table
Now it was only Mackenzie facing off against Logan, the Dalmatian-Great Dane mix, who tormented him all these years.
The chance of finishing the bullying nightmare right in front of him
As if a gentleman's agreement had been reached in silence, Mackenzie and Logan slowly go for a ball to step forward and face each other. A mere 3 meters of distance
Mackenzie and Logan quench their ball, their eyes locked on each other, the whole court is silent, waiting for either dog to make the first move.
"You know…" Logan breaks the silence with determination, still firmly holding his ball, "Even if you win, you will still be the same loser, good for nothing."
"I heard that so many times before…" Mackenzie speaks, still looking at Logan straight in his eyes, "It doesn't even faze me anymore…"
Logan twitches his face, his frown being more predominant.
"It doesn't matter what you say anymore," Mackenzie continues to speak with determination. "You're not as important as you think you are."
Logan frowns even more, to the point he is showing his teeth.
"Are you sure?" Mackenzie continued, "You are not the loser, good for nothing, you always talk about"
Logan grinds his teeth harder.
His growl is more noticeable.
His grip on the ball tightened.
And then…
Snap
"You little SHIT"
Logan, in a quick motion, throws the ball to hit Mackenzie.
But he was ready.
With a quick, smug step to the side, the ball goes past his body, bouncing on the floor behind him to finally hit the wall.
Logan's eyes snap open when he figures out what he has done.
Now. Mackenzie has the ball ready to throw.
And doesn't waste time throwing it to hit Logan.
Logan just turns around quickly to protect his face and chest…Allowing the ball to hit him on the back of his shoulder.
Fweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet*
"Glasshouse wins!"
The black and white female Labrador referee announces, causing the court to explode in cheers.
"Whooohooooo!"
"Yesssss!"
"Did you see that throw?!"
"Logan got wrecked!"
"MACKENZIE GOT LOGAN, MACKENZIE GOT LOGAN!" Chucky freaks out behind the commentator's table as Lucky leans back on his chair in relief.
Mackenzie, with eyes wide open after eliminating Diamond, Bailey, and Logan and with his blood pumping with celebration, turns to his friends on the sideline, raises his arms, and swings them down to scream "YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
From the sideline, Bluey is the first to sprint past the white line to run and clash against Mackenzie to hug him, as the rest of their friends also make their way to him to celebrate.
Mackenzie gladly hugs Bluey back tighter, feeling the familiar warmth of her fur that comforts him in his most desperate times. That after everything he had been through, he would always have Bluey's back and she would have his back.
A situation that came out time and time again over the last 11 years.
And yet, even after countless times of him telling her he sees her as a friend and her telling him she sees him as a friend
His belief is as strong as ever.
He likes Bluey.
And he will not stop until they are finally together like a perfect fairytale story.
"Wow!" Diamond exclaimed, standing next to Bailey, checking on Logan on the court. "Sure, you guys can have this one, Mackenzie. Have fun with the loser of Bluey and the hoe of Bingo."
Mackenzie feels Bluey's fur shiver in his paw. Bluey gently pushes him out of her personal space and turns her head to look at Diamond to say coldly, "What did you say about Bingo?"
Bluey's cold, threatening voice makes his friends stop celebrating around Mackenzie to look at Bluey and Diamond with worried faces, totally expecting what's about to happen next.
"Bluey, don't," Bingo moves closer to her sister and places a hand on her shoulder to convince her to stop.
"You heard me." Diamond shrugs her shoulders with indifference
"No, no," Bluey shakes Bingo's hand off her shoulder and sprints with long strides toward Diamond, clenching her fists. "Say that again, bitch, SAY THAT AGAIN!"
"BLUEY NO!" Bingo shouts as she and Mackenzie hopelessly see Bluey running to Diamond
Diamond leans forward with a mocking face to shout, " YOUR SISTER IS A HOE-"
"OW!"
Bluey's running clenched fist landed right on Diamond's right eye.
Due to inertia, Bluey runs past Diamond, who is pushed back by the punch as she falls to the floor. Bluey immediately stops and turns, quickly dropping to pursue Diamond, falling to the ground with one clenched fist raised.
Bailey quickly falls too and hugs Bluey from her belly to separate her from Diamond. Logan also falls and tries to hold Bluey's hands.
And then another one of Logan's friends joined.
And another one
And another one
Creating a fur ball to try and stop Bluey from harming Diamond anymore.
As fast as Bluey charged at Diamond, Bingo, Rusty, Jack, Judo, Chloe, every single one of Bluey's friends- including Lucky, who took off his headset to help- rushed toward the furball to protect her and manage the situation.
The blood running through Mackenzie's blood was no longer of extasis and celebration; it was charged with an unwavering duty to protect Bluey and get her out of there.
So he charged…without thinking twice.
The world around him turned into a blur. His vision flickered too much to notice anything in detail.
He slams his body against one of Logan's friends on top of the fur ball.
He tightly grabs the fur of another dog to pull him out of there.
He feels someone else's paws on his fur to pull him away, but he counterreacts to stay in the fray.
The world around Mackenzie is a pandemonium of different fur colours, swear words, grunts, and pleading from his friends, along with those of Logan and Diamond, with both heelers at the bottom of the pileup with Bluey trying to land more punches on Diamond.
As Mackenzie was deep into the furball.
"{ENOUGH}"
The authoritative shout of Tommy rings out from a megaphone as two more teachers stand beside him, halting the pandemonium. All the dogs stop and look back at Tommy with frightened expressions and drooping ears as they slowly withdraw from the pileup, each teenager leaving with messed up furs from the tussle and slowly revealing the multicolored set of strings of fur left on the floor from all the pulling.
The student left to the point that Mackenzie and Bingo were holding Bluey from behind, while Logan and Bailey also held Diamond from behind, with a noticeable purple hue around her right eye. All six dogs with their fur also made a mess with strings going out in different directions and panting due to the effort.
"You and you" Tommy angrily points at both Heelers with his megaphone. "Office-" He brings to his mouth to shout "{NOW!}"
Bluey and Diamond forcefully shake their shoulders to remove Mackeznie, Bingo, Logan, and Bailey's hands to stand up with difficulty and join Tommy and the two teachers.
As Mackenzie remains on the floor with his fur in disarray, he observes the teachers escorting Bluey and Diamond out of the court, while more teachers make their presence known to disperse the students. The blood in his veins relaxes as the heat of competition and violence dissipates. He stands up and helps Bingo to his feet, allowing both of them to use their hands to adjust their furs.
"I already told Bluey countless times not to fight Diamond if she says those things," Bingo vents to Mackenzie as she passes her right hand over the fur of her other hand.
"Hate is a powerful thing, Bingo," Mackenzie wisely says, accommodating his fur on his chest, "Even Bluey can't help it sometimes."
Outside the court in the hallways, Alice, Sebastian, Dalilah, Kolina, and Jean-Luc watch as Tommy and the two teachers escort Bluey and Diamond to the principal's office. Jean-Luc quickly noticed Diamond's purple eyes, and Bluey basically unscathed. His eyes jump and put one hand over his mouth to laugh at the absurdity of Bluey getting into a fight and winning, then saying muffley in joke.
"Bluey Heeler, Diamond Heeler, five minutes each, for fighting"