Prescott High

∞ 02

"Choose your battles, babe

Then you win the war."

- Katy Perry, Choose Your Battles

Prescott Jr. Downey was much focused to begin with. Once he had his eyes set on something, he worked for it until he got what triggered his move in the first place. Anything which got into his way was brought down instantly, without second thoughts. Through Prescott, we were now led to believe that only such people would succeed, and nothing less should be expected.

♂♀

There was nothing fancy about Greg Stone's background, in contrast to what many people have been led to believe. He had not the heart of a warrior; what he had was merely a fighter's heart. A warrior fought for what's right. A fighter, on the other hand, fought for the sake of fighting, and nothing else.

Greg wasn't always this way. Being Lucas's best friend ever since they could yell, Greg used to be just like another big brother to me. We used to play battles together; we used to scream together, play hide-and seek together. Hell, we used to do everything together, the three of us.

Since Greg successfully landed in Prescott High, he changed into another person entirely. Here, he always aimed for the highest. He aimed to be the next Prescott, only he didn't want to end his life. He chose, instead, to end others'.

I didn't see eye-to-eye with Greg since then, and I'm guessing that I never will. Lucas insisted that Greg was he reason he even survived here, but what I think is that Greg just might be the reason he'd not make it out alive.

Greg was someone I wasn't particularly fond of; but I didn't loathe him. I had no solid reason to, so long as our paths didn't cross each other's anymore. Greg, however, was pretty damn determined to change that.

He caught me right after school the day I helped that boy. A part of me knew that there was going to be such encounter the moment I decided not to walk away from the washroom. And needless to say, I absolutely dreaded this.

I'd reckoned that if Lucas was anywhere near us when Greg decided to teach me a lesson, then I was going to walk out untouched. While I have decided to skip my karate classes for the sake of having one lazy afternoon to myself, Lucas had his today, hence he left early. Hence, I was on my own this time.

A part of me regretted skipping those classes, or I wouldn't still be here in the first place. But a larger part of me relished having this encounter with Greg alone. Though it was definitely a plus point that he was on his own as well, with none of his minions trailing after him just this time.

I was somewhere near the fences of Prescott High, somewhere near the exit when Greg tapped me just lightly on the shoulder, his voice sounding nothing unlike a low growl. "Paige," he said when I turned around, "can we talk?"

"If by helping that boy, I was issuing a fight for myself, then Greg, I'd say I was expecting this, and that you can do anything you want to," I said without missing a beat.

He blinked once, then twice. He raised both eyebrows, his blue eyes clouded with confusion.

"Hell, Paige, what are you talking about?" he asked, running his fingers through his hair in frustration. "You helped that boy? And what did you think, that I'd beat you up?"

"Sorry, but that's all you seem to be doing these days, Greg," I said. "I don't know what to think of you anymore."

"Think of what we once had, Paige," he said. "Do you see that playground, just across this fence? Don't you remember how much fun we've once had together?"