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CINDY STARES AT HER reflection in the mirror, removing the makeup that she had on earlier. She just came back from a party hosted by a company that introduced a new product. As always, Cindy met up with a lot of CEOs and presidents that she had to entertain the entire night, making her cheeks hurt because of too much smiling.
"I'm so tired," she says while massaging her cheeks. While she was doing so, someone suddenly knocks on her door. Cindy doesn't answer, so the man says, "Madam Cindy, someone is here to meet you."
Cindy was surprised since it was already late at night. She wasn't expecting any visitors at this hour so she says, "Tell them I'm tired. Just ask them to return tomorrow."
"But madam...it's a man named Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire. I suggest you meet with him now," he says, and that alone made Cindy stand from her seat in an instant. Even though she was still wearing the gown that she wore earlier, Cindy quickly opens her bedroom door.
"Where is—"
"Hi Cindy," Max says, standing beside Cindy's secretary.
Cindy doesn't say anything and just grabs Max to embrace him. "Leigh, it's so good to see you," she says as Max hugs her back. When they pulled away from the hug, Cindy looks at him and asks, "What are you doing here at this hour?"
"How about we talk about this in private," Max suggests instead, making Cindy realize that they were standing in the middle of the hallway for everyone to hear.
"Oh yes, of course, I apologize. Please, come in," she says, and the two went inside the bedroom.
"I apologize if I look like a mess right now. I just came back from Binoche's party. I was surprised you weren't there, but I met up with Hans so it was fine," Cindy says as she walks back to her vanity to remove her earrings and necklace.
Max looks around the extravagant room which was bigger than his. Cindy's room literally had a living room inside so he took a seat on the sofa and said, "We were invited too but we had to decline it. We're still not partners with the Binoche family yet. Father said that we shouldn't let them use the party as a way to get our endorsement."
"I guess that makes sense."
As Cindy was removing her necklace, she looks back at Max through the mirror and tells him, "So, why did the great Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire grace me with his presence?"
Max chuckles at the compliment and stands from the seat to walk toward Cindy. "A lot of things have happened recently, so I came here to talk to Hellcat. If that's fine by you," he says as he stood behind her.
Cindy smirks, but she doesn't answer and looks back at her reflection instead. "Leigh, can you give me a hand with this?" She asks, gesturing at the zipper on the back of her gown.
Max doesn't say anything and takes a step closer to Cindy instead. He then takes the zipper and slowly pulls it down. While he was doing so, he looks at the mirror in front of them, looking at Cindy straight in the eyes as he leans closer to her ear to whisper, "How well do you know Serenity Karlsson."
Cindy's eyes widen in the instant, and Max finally zips the gown to the end. He then turns around from Cindy as Cindy drops the gown on the floor, exposing her naked upper body.
"Where did you hear that?" She asks, her voice changing in an instant.
"President Helena gave me a hint when I visited your house. She gave me a note that mentioned the words Crème de la crème's rank 8. I asked Étienne to look for that person, and he found out that it was a woman named Serenity," Max explains, his back facing the other way so he wouldn't see Cindy changing her clothes.
Cindy leans against her vanity as she stares at herself in the mirror. "Serenity...I haven't heard of that name in such a long time," she says before finally looking away from her reflection so she could wear her robe. "She was the previous queen. When I first enrolled in J.S High, she was the most respectable sisterhood leader."
Cindy walks towards Max and heads to the sofa to take a seat, Max following behind her so he could sit on the opposite sofa.
"Serenity helped reshape the House of Queens. She made rules that protected both the sisterhoods and the white uniforms. She was also the one who took me in as an underling," Cindy explains.
Max didn't say anything and just continued listening to Cindy. He didn't want to speak too soon or Cindy might end up not saying anything to him at all.
"I remember during my first years, the kings at that time—Paradox—called for her. They said they needed her assistance, and as the queen that she is, she visited the House of Kings with no hesitation," Cindy explains further, making Max certain that what Cj said was similar to this story.
It looks like Paradox really called for her.
"We don't know what happened to her there, we don't know what they talked about either, but Serenity came back a different person. She just...changed. It didn't take long before she declared war against them. It was surreal because she brought hell upon the students of J.S High like she wanted revenge. She sent spies and planted bombs on their base, everything was just out of hand. When president Janus and Janet found out that she was the mastermind behind the destruction and chaos, she was expelled." Cindy shares, her expression getting darker and darker.
Max couldn't stomach the fact that he knew what really happened because of Cj, but he knew that it was better if he wasn't the one who told Cindy about it.
"This might sound out of the blue, but I hope you can talk to Charles Justin Mills. He knows something that might answer your questions. If you were the one who asked, I think he'll tell you," Max explains. Cindy was confused by it, but she nodded her head anyway.
"Now it's your turn Leigh...why are you asking me about her?" Cindy finally asks.
Max takes a deep breath first before telling Cindy, "I have a suspicion that she might be Siren. There are instances that the brotherhoods refer to Siren as a her so I've had doubts if she was in fact a woman or not, but after hearing about Serenity, I started thinking about it. Étienne told me that Serenity died but she's still listed as rank 8 in Crème de la crème, which just didn't make any sense."
When Cindy heard what Max said, she couldn't help but furrow her brows in confusion. "Your suspicion wouldn't make sense Leigh because Étienne's right, she did die."
"You're certain?" Max asks.
"I don't know why she's listed as rank 8, but it was reported to us Vixens that Serenity took her own life away. We all went to her funeral. We saw her get buried underground. There's no way she's alive," Cindy explains, making Max massage his temple in frustration.
"So she's not really Siren? Could it be that Cj's right? Could Sky really be the leader of Crazy 8?" Max asks, making Cindy look back at him with surprise.
"Sky? You mean the famous model? Sky Hansen?" Cindy asks.
Max thought that Cindy only knew him because he was famous, but then Cindy said, "I don't know how they're related, but I saw him at Serenity's funeral. He wasn't with anyone though. He was just silently...there."
"What?"
"I remember because he had a scar on his right eye like he was slashed. It was a deep scar too so concealer wouldn't even be able to hide it," Cindy reveals, confusing Max even more because he's seen Sky up close, and it was obvious that Sky did not have a scar. All of this just didn't make sense to him. The more he tries to find Siren's identity, the more the story becomes confusing.
It's as if Siren doesn't really want to be found.
It's as if...she was hiding from someone.
...
The next day came by fast. Everyone was running around the halls of J.S High. The bell then rings, and Max went straight to their clubroom. When he got there, he sees that some of the members who were already there were circling around the table and that instantly made Max's chest start beating fast.
"Max," Felix calls out when he saw him enter the room.
Max doesn't say anything as the members made way for him. When he finally got to the table, his eyes widened from shock when he saw another white envelope like last time.
Everyone was silent as Max took the envelope. He didn't want to make the same mistake as last time, so Max takes a deep breath and prepares himself for the worse. Without hesitation, he finally opened the envelope. Max thought that he was ready for whatever it would be, but as soon as he read what was inside, Max drops the paper, covering his mouth from complete shock.
The members gathered closer to see the paper that fell on the table. They didn't know what it was, but what they saw shocked them to the point where they couldn't even say a single word.
You have two hours to spread this rumor or I'll handle it myself, the note said. And bellow it was another confession similar to yesterdays.
Confession No. 2: I have a secret relationship with a powerful brotherhood leader who uses me whenever he needs to let off steam. The relationship is highly sexual, but it is a secret that only both of us share. Who do you think I am?
The confession could be anyone, but attached to the letter was another picture. Unlike the one with Krist, the picture wasn't just a hoax. Because the picture showed two very powerful leaders, Kim Hee-joon and the king, Viktor Stepanov.
In the picture the two were underneath the staircase, standing against each other. Hee-joon's back was pressed on the wall as Viktor was carrying him. The two even had their lips together. Even though the picture was dark, you could clearly see that it was two of them.
"T-This is bad...that's the fucking royals," Payton says as starting to grow anxious so he immediately took out his inhaler to use it. Even the other members of the club were scared. It is a known fact that you can never mess with the royals. If they spread this rumor then all of them will be good as dead, but if they don't, then Sky would do it for them. They're on the edge here.
"Payton, what do we do?" One of the freshmen members asks since Payton is their club leader.
Payton takes a deep breath and puts his inhaler back in his pocket. "If we don't do anything Sky is going to do this for us. This might sound crazy but...we have to tell Viktor about this."
"What?!" The members shouted in shock except for Max and Felix who also agreed that this would be their best bet.
"Whether we do something or not, nothing will change, but if we tell Viktor beforehand, they'll be able to do something. This is the royals we're talking about. If Sky wants to challenge them then we'll give it to him," Payton explains.
The other members seemed hesitant, so Max looks at them and says, "The royals have the most power in this school. They can do the things we can't do. Since they're already involved in this, it's best if we ask for their help. There's no other way."
"I agree to that," Eren—the first-year representative of their club—says, and finally, the other members agreed as well.
"Alright, since I'm the leader I'll bring this to the stadium. I'm sure the princes and the kings are there. I'll call you after everything is settled," Payton says as he takes the picture and the letter, shoving them back inside the envelope so he could bring them to Hee-joon and Viktor.
"I'll come with you," Eren bravely suggests, then the two quickly went out of the club to head to the royals. Max and the others didn't know how they would react after finding it out, but they could only pray that the royals won't blame them for this.
"Prepare yourselves for whatever will happen," Max announces, and the other members of Omega Society nodded their heads and started wearing their club uniforms. It was obvious that they were nervous, and Max couldn't say anything to them, especially since Viktor could be very unpredictable.
But while waiting, someone suddenly entered their club. For a second Max thought that Payton and Eren were already back, but to their surprise, the unexpected visitor was actually their club advisor, Sky Hansen.
The entire clubroom became quiet as they stared at Sky with shock. Max couldn't process it either, but when he saw the chocker on his neck, Max couldn't control himself anymore as he ran towards Sky, pushing him against the wall and pinning him there.
Everyone was shocked, but before they could do anything, Felix stopped them, so all the members could do was take a step back and watch in silence.
"You think this is fun you sick fuck? Do you think it's fun to mess with us like this, to spread secrets that others are so afraid to confess? Huh?!" Max shouts, pushing Sky on the neck with his forearm, making it harder for Sky to breathe.
"L-Let go..." Sky struggled to say, but Max didn't listen.
"You think it was fun playing with people? To Cj, to Krist, and now the Royals?! What the hell is wrong with you!" Max shouted, his voice echoing. He was so angry that in one look you could tell that Max was out to kill. Even the members of the club were getting scared.
This was Max's power after all. Just because he doesn't show it, it doesn't mean he's still as weak as he was when he first got to this House. Everything he experienced so far was bound to make him stronger.
"I know who you are...Sky," Max says as he looked straight into Sky's eyes. Sky didn't say anything, so Max quickly grabs the chocker from Sky's neck and pulls it off him, breaking it.
Everyone was surprised by Max's action. They didn't know why he'd suddenly do such a thing, but actually, Max did that because he remembered what Cj told him last night. He said that he strangled Siren, and the mark would still be there even after days. But when Sky's chocker was no longer on his neck, Max slowly lets go of him, his eyes wide from shock.
There wasn't any mark.
He wasn't Siren.
"Y-you..."
Sky, who fell to the ground, tries to catch his breath. Max doesn't say anything as he stares down at him. He was about to approach Sky again, but when he was about to, the loud siren sound could suddenly be heard throughout the campus, surprising everyone.
"What's going on?" Felix confusingly asks.
Max didn't know what it was too, but then his phone started to ring. Max pulls out his phone and sees that the caller was actually Payton, so Max quickly answered it and said, "Payton? What's going on?"
"We met up with the royals. I didn't really get the chance to explain myself, but I gave them the envelope. Right after that, the prince got mad and pulled Crazy 8's flag," Payton answers like he was out of breath. It was obvious that he was running.
"PHD pulled Crazy 8's flag?!" Max shouted in shock, surprising the rest of the omegas.
"Eren and I are heading to the stadium. Let's meet each other there," Payton says before ending the call. As soon as it did, Max looks back at the omegas and told them, "Everyone line up and head to the stadium. Felix, go and accompany them."
"Okay," Felix answers, and he and the rest of the omegas ran out of the room, leaving Max alone with Sky who was still kneeling on the floor.
"He's an idiot...he's such a fucking idiot. He's ruining everything just because he's bored. He's always like this..." Max could hear Sky mumble to himself.
Max slowly approached Sky again and kneeled down in front of him. "Sky," he calls out, making Sky lift his head up to look at him. "Who are you?" Max finally asks.
Sky doesn't answer, but then, he reaches out for his pocket and pulls out a handkerchief. Without saying anything, he uses the handkerchief to wipe something off his right eye. Max didn't know what he was doing, but when Sky looked back at him, Max's mouth opened wide from complete shock.
Because on Sky's right eye was a scar, a scar that Cindy saw when she first met him.
"My name is River Hansen, Sky's twin brother."
- END -