(Prominis 19, 56 / 6:00AM)

  (Gwen on Megaphone) GOOOOOOOOD MOOOOOORRRRNIIIINNNNGGGG LAAAAAGEEEEFOOOORRRR!!!!!

  (Luke’s thoughts) Huh what? What the heck is going on!

  As Gwen giggled as she held up a government-crafted megaphone, using it to wake everyone up from their deep sleep.

  A couple of minutes ter, many residents opened their doors to the brutal wake-up call that shocked the second-story floor, their eyes barely opening and already dressed for the day.

  The kids had gray lining beneath their eyes, followed by the way they walked as if they didn’t get enough sleep…

  (Luke’s thoughts) We just barely slept for 4 hours. Why did Gwen decide to end a celebration party at 2 in the morning…

  Same as Luke, the three other boys got out of their perspective rooms as well, followed by another boy who was with the group.

  Gary decided to speak with the new member of the group.

  (Gary) Did you get enough sleep, Diego?

  (Diego) Barely …

  Previously, Stan and Gary noticed a boy that looked simir to one of their friends from the robotics club. Diego, the same age as Gary, was considered to be the opposite of Gary; being skinny and tall. He had spiky bck hair and gsses, followed by his skin being retively brown. His nose and ears were nothing distinguishable, but he was dressed simir to a mechanic.

  (Stan) Why did they have to wake us up at 6 in the freaking morning?

  (Fred) I hope they have breakfast…

  (Gary) I hope we just get our blessings over with.

  (Luke) But we have to earn those blessings, we can’t just take things for granted.

  (Gary) Does it look like I wanna train?

  As Luke and Gary had their little dispute, Stan noticed that out of everyone that came out of their rooms, there was one teen that didn’t have gray lining on their eyes.

  (Stan) Who’s that dude? He shakes off four hours of sleep like nothing!

  (Fred) I think his name is Jack. He’s probably a year younger than you.

  As Stan was fascinated that Jack was the most energized one up, Luke gnced to see the 15-year-old teen. Jack had brown eyes, followed by wavy hair. He looked to be pretty tall for his age, and he appeared retively slim. He had long arms and legs, followed by a short nose and normal ears. The only thing that was weird about him was …

  (Luke’s thoughts) Red hair…

  (Stan) Red hair? Well, Fred, I think you have competition for the weirdest hair color.

  (Fred) …

  As Fred remained timidly silent, there was also another thing that Stan noticed in the crowd. They were missing one person, most likely a girl since there were originally four girls and now there are three.

  Gwen also noticed this and checked the roster, her fingers tracing each name with ease.

  (Gwen) Hmm … aah, I see. We’re missing Luna.

  Gwen then walks towards the door where the girl, Luna, was assigned to. Opening the door, Gwen noticed the 16-year-old girl was still fast asleep, her face deep into her pillow.

  (Gwen) She slept through the megaphone huh? Guess I have no other choice huh…

  As Gwen approached the bed, Luke and the others were curious as they saw Luna, still fast asleep snoring in bed. Luna looked to be taller than the average girl, followed by her deep bck hair that was retively short. Her nose was normal, followed by her ears being a little rger than most people, but her skin was tan, but not too tan. But her face …

  (Luke, Gary, Fred, Stan, Diegos’ thoughts) She’s pretty…

  Taken aback by her beauty, the boys were all blushing nervously as it felt wrong to stare at her.

  But Gwen didn’t care. Sitting on top of the bed, Gwen then rubbed both her hands, giggling a bit as she said—

  (Gwen) Clear!

  Luke then shuddered as he remembered that wake-up call three months ago…

  Using both hands, she positioned her thumb and index, she then grabbed both … well …

  As soon as Gwen twisted Luna’s … you know … Luna instantly woke up, her eyes clenched with pain. But in that incredibly short time, she turned her shock to pure undeniable rage.

  (Luna) WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING!!??

  Luna immediately sucker-punched Gwen with all her strength, sending her flying to nd where the five boys were located. At least breaking her fall, the boys were on the floor, with Gwen on top of them. Upon seeing Gwen’s face, her cheeks were purple, one of her teeth was missing, and her nose was broken. Even her eyes looked like she was seeing stars.

  As Luke saw Gwen’s battered and bloodied face, he wasn’t angry at Gwen, but rather …

  (Luke’s thoughts) She kind of had it coming…

  But Luna wasn’t done.

  Sono after her punch, Luna then stomped her way to where Gwen was, clearly still angry for the little prank that Gwen did. Luna had on gray sweatpants and an oversized baggy gray shirt, and on her wrist, she wore a charm bracelet…

  (Luke’s thoughts) Should I not get … no … Gwen’s the reason why I’m here!

  Luke then stood in front of Luna to protect Gwen from harm, putting himself in Luna’s path. As Luna saw this, she looked at Luke coldly and maliciously, looking at meek prey.

  (Luna) Move…

  Luke continued to block her path, but he was afraid the same thing that happened to Gwen might happen to him…

  Luna then grabbed Luke by his shirt with her left hand, gripping his colr with her hands quivering with anger. The difference in weight and strength was noticeable, as Luna was towering over him with pure dominance.

  (Luna) I said move…

  Luke didn’t say anything, not letting a single voice or sound get out of his vocal cords. Angry, Luna then readied her stance, preparing to throw a right fist directly at Luke’s stomach.

  (Luna) I said move!

  Just as she was about to nd a hard blow to Luke’s stomach, a man in his te 30s came by in the knick of time to hold back Luna. Using both his hands, he made sure that his arms were ndlocked by Luna's arms as well. Despite Luna being strong for her age, the man had an aura of strength and composure, as the way he held back Luna caused everyone to hold their breath.

  (???) Calm down.

  (Luna) Let me go!

  The man then put more strength into his armlock, and Luna felt her arms stretching horribly. She tried to fight back the pain and even the man, trying to use her head as a way of punching his chin, but no matter what, the man was unbreakable in strength.

  (???) Luna, calm down …

  The man then started petting Luna’s head with reassurance and comfort, as if petting a wild animal. The way he moved his hand back and forth, the way his fingertips pressed along her scalp, it was noticeable that this wasn’t the first time he had done this…

  (???) Are you calm?

  (Luna) … yes David…

  The man named David then let go of Luna, hoping that she let all of her anger and frustration out of her system.

  Luke saw the man, as he had medium messy bck hair, followed by his stature being retively tall. He wore a cowboy hat as well as bck vest and blue cargo pants, with bck boots and a bandanna he has around his neck. He had dark brown eyes, normal nose and ears, but also had little sideburns that made him look young for his age.

  Luckily for him, Luna didn’t seem too interested in Gwen and Luke anymore, but she decided to head on in front of everyone, wanting to get the day over with…

  (Gary, Fred, Stan, and Diego’s thoughts) She’s crazy…

  (Luke’s thoughts) She’s scary…

  ______________________________________________________________________________

  (Prominis 19, 56 / 8:00AM)

  (Boris) Alright everyone, let’s start with the most basic of training!

  After eating a hearty breakfast that Fred was looking forward to, the 14 candidates headed towards the gym room. With the room filled with dumbbells, weights, pull-up bars, and a big ring in the middle of the room, Luke smelled the cleanly bleached room.

  Everyone did, as they took in the white and spotless room that they’ll be training in for the next four years.

  (Boris) First things first, to be a soldier, a soldier has to learn the basics of fighting.

  Standing in the middle of the ring were three adult figures. One was the man named David, who was the one that held Luna down, and the other two were unknown to the candidates. One was a girl barely in her 30s, and the other was a male who was in his te 20s.

  With Boris leading the candidates, he wanted to make sure that everyone got a good view, so he ordered his sheep.

  (Boris) Make sure three to four people are on each side of the bottom of the right.

  Four sides of the ring, and 14 people, and since Luke's group is five people.

  (Luke) I’ll go with those two.

  Luke went to a side near his friends, on the right side of his side, right by the corner. Next to him was the red-haired teen named Jack, alongside an elf with ginger bed hair. He had green eyes, pale skin, blue pants, gray boots, and a gray shirt, and he looked to be Gary’s age. He looked a couple of inches taller than Jack, and he was less sturdy than Jack.

  (Luke’s thoughts) I forgot what his name was…

  Instead, Luke focused on the subject at hand, his eyes focusing mostly on David. David noticed Luke staring yet he completely ignored it, not caring.

  Boris then got hold of a microphone, clinking on the switch to turn it on. As the vibrations sounded in the room, Boris stood up tall, trying to make his presence well known for his short body.

  (Boris) So, as we all know, fighting is crucial, but how do you guys learn how to fight?

  No one raised their hand, not confident or not bothering to care to answer. With Boris being left in the dust, he signaled either the three adults to do something…

  David noticed this signal, and with a sigh, he turned towards Luke, with eyes stern and serious as the boy felt something cold picking him. In no time, David signaled Luke to climb up onto the ring, his eyes locking onto Luke’s.

  But Luke doesn't want to, considering that Luke isn’t the strongest person in the room, and he doesn’t want to be beled as the runt on the first day. Luke began to sweat as David kept on signaling him to get on.

  Sighing, David then put his hand on Luke’s face, his fingertips digging deep into Luke’s skull. Dragging Luke, he pulled him up off the spectator side and into the ring, as people started giggling at the embarrassing dispy.

  Now with Luke in the ring, Boris then signaled David again, but David shook his head no, as if he knew the outcome…

  (Boris) David, you know what needs to be done…

  (David) I’m fine with putting the boy in, but not with her…

  (Boris) It’s to demonstrate the difference in fighting styles.

  (David) sigh … I hope you pnned a funeral.

  David then signaled a girl to go inside the ring, and lord and behold …

  (Luke’s thoughts) Oh no… not her…

  The girl that David brought in, Luna, began eyeing Luke maliciously as if she was plotting down the entire fight in her mind. Scared, Luke began to take a couple of steps back, his face turning pale as he knew who won this fight.

  Everybody knows who will win this fight…

  (Stan) He got the crazy girl…

  (Fred) Looks like I need a new best friend…

  (Gary) After this … I’ll be nicer to him.

  (Diego) It was nice knowing him…

  As everyone started gossiping and praying. Luke started to breathe in and out rapidly, his heart going through an episode.

  (Boris) Alright! David, Jenny, and Jerry get out of the ring. This is going to be a good one!

  As the three adults looked at Luke with worry, all three of them watched up close, just in case the fight would be ugly.

  (Boris) Candidates Luke Fenix; Age 12. Luna Guerra; Age 16. Fight!

  As the bell rang, for Luke, it wasn’t a fight, but just a deadly game of tag…

  The objective, try not to be punched, for if he ever gets punched—

  Luna then charges forward with speed and precision, her movements fwless and coordination unmatched. As everyone saw the way she moved, it was as if she was honing this bald for years…

  Even the three adults at bay were in utter shock at how fast and precise Luna moved, so much that David had his hang on the ring’s rubber chords, his nervousness intruding on him—

  Luke’s reaction time failed him.

  As Luna got close, she sideways jumped to the side to nd a punch on Luke’s body. With her fist loaded, she sprang it forward, hitting the right side of his stomach region, where she would nd the fist right at the liver.

  Instantly, Luke bent down in utmost agony and pain, as if someone stabbed him in that region twenty times over. Not wanting to get up, Luke remained in motion to the ground, coughing and wheezing with drool starting to drip down his mouth.

  Luna wasn’t done, for what she did next shocked even the adults…

  Bending down, she grabbed Luke’s hair, speaking normally at a level that most people could hear. Her angry look was repced with a sadistic smile, her predatory eyes eyeing her prey.

  (Luna) Hah … I feel calm now …

  As if toying with him, Luna moved her hand left and right, the motion of Luke’s head going along with it. The more she moved his head, the more “ecstasy” and “fun” she was having, not wanting it to stop. Luke was so caught up in the pain, he didn’t care that he was being toyed with.

  (Luna) Not putting up a fight? You look pretty submissive right now…

  (Luke’s thoughts) Was I supposed to fight her no matter what?

  Everyone had faces of disdain and disappointment as Luna sadistically pyed with Luke, especially his friends…

  (Fred) He’s still alive…

  (Gary) Yeah … definitely being nicer to him …

  (Stan) That bitch…

  (Diego) At least she’s pretty…

  With everyone wanting the fight to stop, David jumped into the ring, about to hold Luna down for Luke’s safety, until he stopped in his tracks…

  Even Luna stopped what she was doing, as both she and David heard an audible whisper coming from Luke.

  (Luke whispering) … thank god …

  (Luna) What?

  (Luke whispering) thank god…

  (Luna) Thank god for what?

  Luna then pulled Luke’s face closer to hers, his face inches away from her ear.

  (Luke) Thank god you didn’t punch the left side of my stomach…

  With her guard down, Luke then pulled out a bottle of near-empty perfume from his left pocket, pointing and spraying it instantly in Luna’s eyes.

  (Luna) AAH!

  Temporarily blinded, Luke then used this opportunity to hold Luna down to the ground, pcing his right arm around her neck, an immediate chokehold on her.

  Stunned and outsmarted, Luna was not pleased that Luke pulled a dirty trick, her teeth clenching with anger while being held down, as her prey was about to be the predator.

  (Luna choking) ack … You dirty cheat!

  Luna, still temporarily blinded, started to cw her way out of the chokehold, which was not one of Luke’s strongest suits. Her hands prying his arm more and more, Luke’s little trick didn’t work out like he thought it would.

  (Luke’s thoughts) Oh no…

  Broken free, and both on the ground, Luna then reversed the situation. Grabbing his arm by memory, she then caged Luke’s neck, a far better chokehold than Luke’s.

  Choking, he quickly tapped Luna’s arm, his way of surrendering to her. Luna, her eyes bloodshot with rage and heavy breathing, continued to choke Luke, as Luke’s eyes were starting to roll in the back of his head.

  (Luna) I’m not falling for any tricks this time!

  Luke started to drool, the freshness of his saliva dripping down onto the ring floor. He tapped a couple more, but Luna wouldn’t budge.

  Fortunately, David pulled Luna off of Luke, using all his strength so that Luna would stop choking the lights out of Luke. Barely breathing, Luke had trouble trying to get some air inside his system, tinnitus ringing his ears as his lungs continued to slowly let air in.

  Meanwhile, Luna was still filled with rage, as her veins started to bulge out of her temple, which made everyone flinch at the thought of poor Luke inaudible and barely breathing. The more David restrained her, the more she gritted her teeth and gred ferociously with her eyes.

  (Boris) I guess it shows us both their fighting styles huh… Jenny, take the boy to the infirmary.

  (Jenny) Got it, sir.

  The woman named Jenny went inside the ring, putting the boy on her back before leaving the ring. Jenny had dark brown hair wrapped in a ponytail, with brown monolid eyes. She wore gsses and was pale skinned, and she was to be a couple of inches shorter than Gwen. She had a mole on the left side of her chin, with her nose and ears being retively small.

  She also wore a long bck dress and bck heels. As Jenny looked at Luke, his face sleeping alongside her back, she then remembered a familiar face from long ago…

  (Jenny’s thoughts) He reminds me of Kenichi…

  ______________________________________________________________________________

  (Prominis 19, 56 / 12:03PM)

  (???) How long has he been napping for? The dude just got choked, so it can’t be that bad.

  (???) But Luna is the strongest female fighter out of the candidates, probably the strongest one here…

  (???) I’ll take the bme for this, I could’ve handled it better…

  In the void, he heard three voices coming from somewhere. He wanted peace—

  How many times does he bckout and hear new people?

  Jolting out of his nap, Luke opened his eyes to see David sitting on a chair, facing the direction of Luke.

  (David) Victim?

  (Luke) Of what?

  (David) Gwen’s wake-up call?

  (Luke) Gwens—oh … I guess so …

  (David) Listen, son, sorry for what Luna did to you. Even though I talked with her afterward, she just rolled her eyes and walked off angrily, you know, typical teenage girl…

  (???) Bro, that's not some typical teenage girl!

  As David was apologizing to Luke, the sincerity and slight guilt about Luna’s outburst, a teenage male voice was heard to the left of Luke. Looking to his left, he saw a teenage boy with red hair, who was none other than—

  (Luke) Uh, Jack right?

  (Jack) Yeah, man, I thought you had it rough! But noooo, look what she did to me!

  As Jack was lying in bed in the hospital lounge, he showcased to Luke a little cast on his ankle, the reason for being in the lounge in the first pce.

  (Luke) Did she break your ankle?

  (???) She just sprained your ankle, which was mostly your fault Jack…

  Another teenager, probably a young adult, was sitting in front of Jack, simir to how David was to Luke. Luke didn’t recognize him, but he felt like he had seen him before…

  (Luke) I feel like I know you…

  (???) Names Miles, wanna soda?

  As Luke looked closely, Miles was different from the others. For one, Miles looked to be older than Luna, most likely two years older than her.

  He had a dark skin tone complexion, followed by his hair being wrapped up in a ponytail. His hair was gray, followed by the unusual bck eyes, as well as a body being well built and sturdy, probably more than Stan’s. He was also tall, a few inches taller than Jack.

  He wore a blue shirt with a bck vest, followed by bck boots and blue jeans, and had a neckce with a cross.

  (Luke) No thanks, I’m good.

  (Miles) Cool beans. Want a soda, Jack?

  (Jack) Yeah, pass me one.

  Miles passes the soda that he was originally going to give Luke to Jack.

  (Jack) Mr. Pepper? You know I don’t like Mr. Pepper Miles…

  (Miles) Then give it to me.

  (Jack) …

  (Miles) Give it.

  (Jack) Get your own!

  Miles then snatched the soda away from Jack, and as a way to insult Jack, Miles opened the Mr. Pepper soda can, looked Jack dead in the face, and drank the entire can in one gulp. Finishing the soda, he crunched up the can and threw the tin can like a frisbee to Jack. Jack gaped at him.

  (Miles) Keep it.

  (Jack) You’re an asshole, you know that?

  (Miles) Your spoiled ass started it.

  (David) Jack, if you keep it up, I’ll make sure you get put into the same ring as Luna.

  (Miles) So stop compining.

  (David) You too Miles, you’re close to being Luna’s candidate.

  Jack and Miles immediately zipped their mouths shut for the greater good of themselves.

  (David) Anyway Luke, I asked Jenny and she told me that you’re good to go.

  (Luke) Oh ok …

  Luke then proceeded to get up from the hospital bed, stretching and breathing in so that he could continue with his first day.

  (Luke) So what did I miss?

  (David) 8 to 9 AM was mostly the ring competition. 9 AM to 10 AM was mostly the history of fighting techniques, and 10 AM to 12 PM was the elite training. Right now, everyone is busy getting lunch.

  (Luke) Oh … I was wondering, how did Jack sprained his ankle?

  (Jack) Dude, I’ve been trying to understand that part up until now.

  (Miles) Jack “accidentally” tripped Luna during the elite training. She got angry and kicked his leg while he was running away. The fall is what led to his sprained ankle.

  (Jack) But Sean made a bet with me!

  (Miles) You and Sean … I swear…

  As Miles gets more and more frustrated with Jack's antics, Luke is ready to go to the lunch hall with his friends. As Luke was about to set out…

  (David) Kid, just want to let you know that Luna isn’t that bad of a person. She can be a huge handful, but once you get to know her, you can understand where she’s coming from.

  As Luke gave David a nod of acknowledgment, Luke walked out the door, hoping to get a meal in his stomach.

  (David’s thoughts) She went through hell. If I was in her shoes, of course I would be unstable…

  (Luke’s thoughts) I almost died … just how much more pain can I take?

  ______________________________________________________________________________

  (Prominis 19, 56 / 8:33PM)

  (Luke’s thoughts) I guess they all crashed out…

  Since Luke didn’t go through the hellish training before lunch, all the candidates who participated went to sleep early.

  (Luke’s thoughts) Don’t want to be spoiled though … so I’ll leave them be…

  Walking through the garden behind the main building, Luke saw the Kepputhan night sky. The two moons that were barely visible to the night sky shone dimly as Luke ate a leftover slice of pizza from the dining hall.

  (Luke’s thoughts) I guess in big cities, light pollution is still a thing… I kind of wish I saw the full night sky, filled with stars, gaxies …

  As Luke was lost in thought, he heard two voices coming from the other side of the garden. He didn’t pay any heed to it, but he wanted to get close to hear what their conversation was about.

  Walking towards the area, he opened his ear to eavesdrop just a bit in case the conversation was interesting—

  (???) Sorry, I just don’t find you attractive …

  (???) So what if I’m not attractive to your tastes? Many girls find me cute and sexy. I guess you’re into more nice guys huh? Well, I can be a little good boy if you want.

  (Luke’s thoughts) What?

  Luke stopped to comprehend what he just heard, his eyebrows tilted and his eyes squinting. Slowly, he checked to see what was going on, but carefully so that it didn't look like he was spying.

  Hiding behind a bush, he looked to see what the two people were talking about—

  There was a girl with blonde hair and skin as smooth as a wild chicken’s egg. She had bright blue eyes, a cute button nose, and normal-shaped ears. Her hair was medium length to short, with most of her hair down, combined with the radiance of her body. She wore a simple long bck dress, with dark sneakers, and on her neck was a cross neckce. She was elegant, she was pure. She was not short yet not tall, but she was—

  (Luke’s thoughts) Who is that girl …

  His cheeks showed no signs of stopping his blushing, followed by his palms being sticky and wet. His whole body lit up in warmth as if a mere gnce would shine the whole cloudy night sky.

  But there was someone else talking to her.

  The boy looked to be Gary and Diego’s age, and judging by his leaf shaped ears, Luke realized the boy was an elf.

  (Luke’s thoughts) That’s the elf from the ring tournament that was with Jack, I think his name was… I forgot …

  The elf showed that he didn’t mean any harm to the woman, but he didn’t want to take no for an answer.

  (Ginger Elf) What’s your type? And I promise you I’ll meet that criteria in no time!

  (Blonde Girl) I uh … don’t have a type …

  (Ginger Elf) Oh, you don't? Then why not go out with me? I could—

  (Blonde Girl) I mean … as long as he’s nice and has a good heart, then that’s all that matters …

  Luke began to get more nervous, as his chest began to feel heavy as he stared at her. The blonde girl continued to speak to the elf, trying to find a nice way of rejecting him, but…

  (Ginger Elf) I could be nice. And I mean, not everyone has a heart of gold. We’re all human in a way, despite my appearance—oh … I get it … I see … I guess you’re not attracted to elves huh?

  (Blonde girl) No, I—

  (Ginger Elf) Just because I’m an elf doesn’t mean you should reject me for it! That’s pretty discriminatory if you ask me!

  (Blonde girl) I just—

  Luke’s fists began to clench as the girl started to tear up from the misunderstanding that the elf was dumping on her. Controlling himself, he quietly stepped out of the bush and walked away, trying to find some way to intervene with the two.

  (Luke’s thoughts) I’ll just have to go away and come back so it’ll look like I just barely got here.

  Slowly walking away, Luke then pulled back to the same spot, hoping to casually slide into the conversation or at least make his presence a little known to them. Walking to the area where the girl was being misunderstood, he wanted to introduce himself with a simple greeting.

  (Luke) Uhm … are you two alright?

  As he questioned both the girl and the elf, he wanted the elf to drop the act. Upon seeing the girl up close, he felt timid as the girl was looking at him, his eyes avoiding any contact with her.

  But focusing his entire attention on the ginger elf.

  (Ginger Elf) Ah don’t worry, we’re doing just fine …

  (Luke) Are you guys sure?

  (Ginger Elf) Yeah … name’s Sean.

  Revealing his name to be Sean, the teen looked at Luke with a normal complexity, with a twisted smile …

  (Sean) Hey, do you like party tricks?

  (Luke) Sort of …

  Sean pulled out from his rge pants pocket, a small metal box. Having it in the palm of his hand, he gave it to Luke, his lips smiling with mischief. Luke’s eyes were scanning the box, a bead of sweat forming next to his right eye.

  (Luke’s thoughts) What’s this…

  Luke tried opening the box, but it was lodged in tight. Dumbfounded, Sean started ughing as Luke’s naivety was showing, spping his knees as he ughed.

  (Sean) Haha… you’re supposed to push the button at the bottom.

  Luke then saw a little bck button in the center of the bottom, the button not being a switch but a simple click. As Luke was about to hit the button, Sean gave him one more bit of advice.

  (Sean) For the trick to work, you have to stare at the top of the box. Don’t worry, it’s not going to kill you…

  Luke, looking down at the box, pressed the button on the bottom. He didn’t know what would happen per se, but his curiosity is what—

  The box burst open, opening up a boxing glove fist that gave Luke an uppercut to the chin. The force of the punch from the box caused Luke to stumble backward onto the ground, with the damage being a bruised chin, but most importantly.

  Luke wiped his mouth to find blood.

  (Luke’s thoughts) My tongue!

  He massaged his cheek, his fingertips scrounging back and forth along the area, knowing that wouldn’t be enough to cure a bleeding tongue.

  As Luke stood up, he noticed that Sean was running away in the distance, pulling a childish yet dangerous prank on Luke, which caused Luke to inhale and exhale slowly, putting all his anger deep within his heart yet again.

  (Luke’s thoughts) Why is everyone out to get me?

  To get it checked, Luke headed towards the hospital lounge again, rubbing his cheeks, until he was stopped by the girl. Her face had a lot of worry, one of sentiment and care.

  (Blonde girl) Are you ok?

  Avoiding eye contact, Luke started to sweat with nervousness and perspiration, letting his extremely timid sideshow.

  (Luke) Y-yeah … I-I’m fine…

  (Blonde girl) … I’ll go with you to the hospital if you want.

  (Luke) N-No, you don’t have t-to—

  (Blonde girl) But you're bleeding!

  (Luke) I can manage myself—

  The girl then grabbed Luke’s hand and with him in tow, ran to the infirmary. Running through the garden in the night sky, Luke’s face turned that of a tomato, since he never held hands with a girl other than his mom.

  (Luke) I-I never caught your name…

  The more he was towed by her, the redder he got. Even the girl noticed Luke’s sweaty palms as she held them, but she didn’t mind the nervousness of Luke one bit. Looking back where Luke wanted to know her name.

  (Blonde girl) Oh … uhm … my name is Hope …

  The girl named Hope had her cheeks blushed with nervousness, not as much as Luke's, but enough to be noticeable.

  But as they were about to part into the infirmary, Hope stopped to turn towards Luke, her eyes staring at his.

  (Hope) Luna shouldn’t do that…

  (Luke) I mean I’m still alive, I think she just has anger issues.

  He began rubbing his chin, the pain still caused by the jack in the box punch. Hope was reminded again and opened the door to the building, with Hope bringing some little hope inside Luke.