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THE BELL RINGS AND everyone immediately stood up from their seats. Felix, who was just reading news articles on his phone, puts his things back in his bag before standing. He was about to approach Max and the others when a new face suddenly appears in front of him. It was the white uniform who was seated behind him, Kawanishi Keigo.
"Hi, you're Felix, right? You were the guy who got a perfect score on all the exams," Keigo says with a friendly smile.
Felix stares at him from head to toe, his positive aura instantly irritating him. He was honestly moments away from saying something rude to brush him off, but Felix quickly triggers his innocent persona as he shyly says, "T-Thank you. And congratulations as well...you know...for getting transferred to Class A."
"Yeah, it's a bit overwhelming. One day I was just chilling in class D and now I'm with these famous white uniforms," Keigo says before glancing at Max who was putting his things in his bag while chatting with Ari.
Felix notices who Keigo was staring at and his fake smile instantly changed into an annoyed expression. But just before Keigo could look back at him, Felix changes his expression back in an instant and says, "You mean Max?"
"Yeah, the guy's practically a legend, not just in J.S High but in the business world too. I would really like to be friends with him, you know?" Keigo says, his cheeks suddenly turning red. But as he tries to steal another glance at Max, he suddenly had an idea. "Hey Felix, can you help me approach him? He's a bit intimidating and I'm kind of a dork." Keigo says, surprising Felix.
"What do you—"
"I'd want to be able to casually chat with him but I think I'd get punched by that redhead. Actually, I'm a bit surprised that you're even friends with not only Sinclaire but that infamous gaffer and that scary jack too. They're quite popular after all."
"And why is that surprising?" Felix asks back, now clenching his fist and trying his best not to blow his composure.
"Well you know, you're a bit...different...from them. No offense of course," Keigo dares to say, angering Felix even more.
"Different?" Felix asks. He was about to break character and grab him by the collar, but before he could do anything drastic, Ervin thankfully arrives at the scene just in time.
"Hey, are you bothering my friend here?" Ervin asks, pushing Felix aside and standing in front of Keigo, practically towering over him.
Keigo was surprised as he looked back at Ervin with terror. "N-No...we were just talking, that's all," he defends. Ervin was about to interrogate him, but then Ari and Max arrives at the scene as well, scaring Keigo even more.
"What's going on?" Ari asks. He then looks at Felix and grabs him by the shoulder to check on him. "Are you alright? Did he do anything to you?"
Keigo was honestly moments away from shitting his pants, but luckily for him, Felix pushes Ari away from him and says, "You guys are making a big deal out of this. Relax, we were just talking."
"Oh, is that so? Then I apologize," Ervin instantly says with no hesitation, backing away from Keigo who was now able to breathe because of how scared he was.
"If there's no problem here then let's go," Max then says, and Ari and the others nodded their heads. Max walks out of their room first, followed by Ari and Ervin. But before Felix could follow them, he looks back at Keigo and tells him, "I apologize for what just happened. My friends can be a bit overprotective."
"Oh no, it's fi—"
"But I hope you know it doesn't mean that I can't protect myself," Felix then adds, surprising Keigo because his expression suddenly changed into something more menacing.
"It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kawanishi Keigo," Felix then says, immediately changing back to his cute and innocent persona.
Keigo doesn't say anything out of shock as he watches Felix run out to follow his friends. When he was finally alone in their classroom, Keigo takes a deep breath before leaning on his chair to calm himself down.
"Damn, I genuinely thought they were gonna beat me up," Keigo says while touching his chest.
"Looks like they were right. Other than those three, I really do have to look out for that little one. Something about him is just...terrifying."
...
"What was that all about? What was the new kid telling you?" Ari asks as he and the rest of his friends were heading to the Great Hall to have their lunch.
"Nothing, he was just telling me how he was nervous about being in class A," Felix answers.
"Nervous? Why would he be? We don't bite," Ari says, and Max immediately tells him, "Says the guy who was about to start a fight him earlier."
"What? Ervin made it look like he was doing something to Felix. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't do anything?" Ari defends.
"Well, I noticed Felix clenching his fist. I thought something was up," Ervin then explains, making Felix chuckle this time.
"Sharp as always Ervin."
"So he did say something that irritated you," Max says, making Ari and Ervin look at him, curious to know his answer.
Felix laughs and waves them off. "You guys are looking deep into this a little too much. He was just too bright and positive for me, and you all know that I'm not the type to get along with such personalities," he explains, and surprisingly enough, his friends couldn't help but agree.
"I guess we've just been really cautious lately. I think everyone we meet is just a threat at this point," Ari truthfully says.
"Nothing's wrong with being careful, but let's avoid acting like bullies," Max tells them, and Ari, Ervin, and even Felix nod their heads in understanding.
The four peculiar friends arrive at the Great Hall, excited to have their lunch with the rest of their friends. But just before they could enter the hall, someone suddenly started shouting Felix's name down the hallway.
They turn around and saw a white uniform running towards them. Max even had to squint to see clearer. "Who's that?" He asks.
"Felix!" The white uniform continues to shout. When he finally got close to him, Max's eyes widens from shock as he says, "Payton?"
Payton Wolfe, a third-year gaffer and a club leader of Omega Society, runs towards Max and Felix like he had something important to say. When he finally stopped in front of them, he catches his breath for a quick second before saying, "H-He's here..."
"Who?" Max, Felix, and even Ari and Ervin ask in confusion.
As Payton continues to pant heavily, he eases himself a little as he tries his best to explain, "O-Our new...senior...advisor. He's here. I mean, not here here, he's at our club room."
"What?!" Felix shouts in shock.
"He wants to meet with us so let's hurry. We can't keep him waiting," Payton says before running off again.
"And there goes lunch," Max complains before looking back at Ari and Ervin. "We'll head to our club room first. You guys can eat your lunch without us."
"No problem," Ervin answers, and Max and Felix quickly follow Payton who was obviously in a hurry like his life depended on it.
"Why are we even running?!" Max practically shouts so Payton could hear him.
"That senior..." Payton says, but he stops and doesn't say anything about it anymore, making Max even more curious.
When they finally arrive at their clubroom, they spot Eren Nabi - the representative of the first-years - waiting for them outside.
"It's only Eren? Where are the others?" Max asks, now catching his breath as well.
"He only requested to meet up with the four of us," Payton answers before looking at them one by one, almost like he was checking them and making sure they looked presentable.
"Our club's fate is in this senior's hand. If he ends up not liking us, he might drop us and Omega Society will really get dissolved," Payton seriously says, and even though Max still didn't understand what the fuss was about, he nods his head anyway.
"Alright, let's go," he says as he finally enters the room. Max followed, and then Felix and Eren.
Inside their small clubroom was a tall white uniform standing in front of the window, looking at the scenery outside with a calm expression on his face. When he heard the door open, he instantly smiles.
"S-sir...we're here as you requested," Payton says, and the tall white uniform finally turns around to face them.
Max's eyes instantly widened from shock when he saw who it was. The man was tall with a face that was fit for a model because he was, in fact, a very famous model. Anyone who knows fashion would have seen this face on the cover of famous magazines. He has also walked numerous runways from prestigious brands. Definitely an icon.
"Sky..." Eren says, his mouth wide from shock.
The man named Sky looks at them one by one before giving them a smile that almost made Eren and the others' hearts flutter.
"Why hello there...Omega Society."
Skyler Hansen, better known as Sky, is a famous model. His father is a world-renowned photographer, while his mother is a president of a very famous talent agency. Someone who lives in the city would have seen him even once, especially when there are dozens of billboards with his face on them. But other than his achievements outside J.S High, Sky was a 4th-year gaffer who is famous for being...
"Rank 13. You're rank 13," Max says, remembering his face that appeared at the LED screens earlier when they were at the stadium.
Sky smiles at Max and bows his head to him, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Sinclaire. I've heard so much about you."
"What are you doing here?" Max asks instead of replying to the greeting, instantly making Payton hit him.
"Don't be rude," Payton scolds, but before Max could even defend himself, Sky chuckles and says, "This might be a bit of a shock, but shall we take a seat first?"
The four of them didn't say anything and just nodded their heads to take a seat while Sky sat in the middle of the only long table in their room.
"I apologize for what I said earlier. I was just surprised that someone like you chose to be our club's advisor," Max honestly says, making Sky smile again.
"To be honest with you all I was already enjoying my time at my previous club, which is the Fashion & Fashion Design Club, but I had a little problem with it," he tells them.
"And what could that be?" Max asks.
Sky looks at them with a face that could make anyone feel at ease. But suddenly, out of nowhere, the sweet smile on his face turned into a smirk. "I got bored," he finally answered.
"What?" Max and the rest of the omegas asked from shock, making Sky chuckle this time.
"That's right, I got bored. Fashion is great but I've been in the industry even when I was still in my mother's womb. I wanted to do something else, so when I heard that president Ian was looking for a senior to supervise this society, I grabbed the opportunity," Sky explains, leaving Payton and the others flustered.
"W-well, I guess that's fine. Whatever your reason is, we're glad that—"
"No," Max suddenly says, stopping Payton midsentence, instantly making the others look at him with shock. "This is not a club that you join just because you're bored. Don't give us that bullshit," Max bravely says, almost making Payton faint.
"I agree with him," Eren then adds, surprising Payton even more. "We all joined this club because we take pride in what we do here. If our advisor is only here because he's bored then we might as well let this club dissolve," he explains, making Max look at him with a proud smile.
Sky was surprised, but after a couple of seconds, he started laughing.
"Wonderful! This is wonderful indeed!" Sky says, standing from his seat with an excited grin on his face.
"Wonderful? Did you not hear what we just said?" Max asks in irritation.
Sky looks back at him and says, "Oh I heard. In fact, I heard it loud and clear, and it only made me want to be here even more. You guys are absolutely perfect for this club. I definitely made the right choice."
Max and the others were confused, but then Sky leans close to Payton, removing his glasses and wearing them for himself. Payton was about to complain, but then Sky quickly moves away from him and tells everyone, "I understand your sentiment so I will give you my sincerity. I know that all of you are aware that Omega Society is a laughing stock of all the other clubs, but starting today, we will change that."
"What do you mean?" Felix asks with his eyebrows furrowed.
Sky looks at Felix and smiles at him, touching Felix's chin with his slender fingers before saying, "There are different ways to clean up the brotherhood's dirt."
"Like what?" Payton then asks.
Sky gives Payton his glasses back and looks back at them for a couple of seconds as if he was observing them. And as the silence almost make their ears hurt, Sky finally says, "Secrets."
For Payton and the others, the word secret didn't hold any merit, but for Max, it did. Something about what Sky just said made the skin on Max's hair stand. He knew at that moment that something about this situation felt wrong.
"Secrets?" Eren confusingly asks back.
"That's right. Everyone has a secret, especially the brotherhoods. Don't you just want to know them? Don't you want to unlock the very thing that made them who they are now?" Sky says, excitement present in his voice.
"Jokers, Cigarettes, Crazy 8, Boys Next Door, and even the Royals; all of them have secrets. And it is our duty to make sure that those very secrets don't ruin their reputation. Don't you all agree?" Sky asks with a lower voice, now standing straight again, commanding complete dominance on all of them.
Max couldn't believe that this was the same sophisticated man who was on every cover of a magazine. It felt like he was talking to five different people. You couldn't really tell what his personality is. It's as if he's purposely acting like that so you wouldn't be able to read him.
"This is ridiculous. They're secrets for a reason. There is nothing for us to protect because the brotherhoods made sure that their secrets never get out," Max protests.
"And who told you that we're going to protect it anyway?" Sky asks back.
That question made Max furrow his brows in confusion, but a couple of seconds after, his eyes widened from realization and he immediately stood up from his seat, slamming the table out of anger, causing Payton and the others to flinch. "Are you implying that we spread their secrets? Is that what you're saying?" Max angrily asks, making Sky grin.
"Why? It's not so different from what you did to that poor white uniform anyway," Sky says, and this time, it was Payton, Felix, and Eren's turn to be surprised.
"I know you pinned the blame on an innocent white uniform to protect Cj from what he did to Arthur McKay (Chapter 71). That white uniform was expelled because of what you guys did, so don't go acting innocent now. It doesn't suit you," Sky reveals, leaving Max and the others speechless.
"Come on, what harm can be done if we spread a little rumor? And before things go out out of hand, we ask the brotherhoods if they need our help then poof, gone, in a blink of an eye. It will benefit all of us," Sky casually tells them, now walking towards Max. He was about to touch Max's shoulder, but Max immediately pushes his hand away and says, "You're asking us to blackmail them."
"Blackmail is a bit...off-putting, don't you think?"
"Off-putting or not, blackmailing someone is—" Before Max could even finish his sentence, Sky suddenly slams his foot on the chair in between Max's thighs, almost stepping on Max's lower area if Max wasn't able to widen his legs enough.
"I'm starting to not like you, Mr. Sinclaire," Sky says with a taunting expression, and for a quick second, Max felt fear.
"Why do you even want to do that to the brotherhoods? What's the point?" Felix asks, slowly making Sky turn his head to look at him.
"What's the point?" Sky repeats. "I hate the brotherhoods. I hate them with my very being. They abuse their power and act as if they can do anything they want just because of their title. They act as if they can just get away with everything without any consequences," Sky says, and this time, Max saw the pain in his eyes. Sky had so many emotions in him that Max could barely even keep up.
"A little secret won't hurt anyone anyway," Sky then adds before finally pulling his foot away from Max. He then heads back to his seat and faces the omegas again, his expression now back to the sweet and innocent smile that he showed them when they first got there.
"Every club meeting I will be leaving an envelope that contains a secret. I won't mention whose secret it's from, but I want you all to spread that secret. And then, we'll wait for what happens next. The inevitable is what makes this fun after all," Sky explains with a calmer voice this time.
"And how will you even be able to gather those secrets? Secrets are locked away in the first place. You can't just open it as much as you like," Felix then asks.
Sky takes a deep breath and adjusts his peak cap before saying, "Oh don't worry. I know someone who's very good with that."
- END -