🎆 Chapter 48🎆
SOME TIME LATER, a former underling of Cecile during her rule of the school press had come to visit her. They conversed in small talk while Y/N sat wordlessly on the side wrapping bandages on her nonexistent injuries.
Her S/C hand stopped briefly in midair when a head of dark brown hair peeled out from behind the curtain, followed by a familiar matching voice.
"Oh, hey! I just wanted to check up on—" He saw the student next to Cecile and dipped faster than students on the last day of school. "—Whoops, wrong person! Sorry bout that, I'll be on my way now!"
Cecile's friend then took that opportunity to bash the boy, an irk mark on his forehead. "You'd think that cripple would watch himself by now. Invading in on your privacy like that—"
A small, feminine snicker was heard from the bed next to them.
Before he noticed, Cecile cleared her sore throat quickly, "I..it doesn't bother me. Hey Otis, can you leave for now. I want some time to myself."
"Yeah, sure."
Once his footsteps could no longer be heard in the infirmary, John poked out again, a playful smirk on his face. "Phew! Almost gave us away there, huh?"
The cyan-haired girl's face soured. "Wow, look who has the heart to visit—!"
"Oh, come on! Don't be mad." He brushed it off.
"Of course I'm mad! We made an alliance, and you couldn't even hold back a little?!"
Shoving his hands in his pocket, he retorted, "Hey, I already warned you ahead of time. It's not like I had a choice. If I had let you off easily, what would everyone else think? Joker shows no mercy, yet somehow, Cecile gets away with only a couple of scratches? I don't think so. If I show leniency, people will just do whatever they want. That would make me a pushover, just like Arlo." He hummed, "And you wouldn't want that, would you?"
"..."
"And I mean, look at Y/N." The said heterochromatic girl glanced up with cold eyes at the mention of her name. "She seems fine. No complaints from her."
"Well, not much for me to complain about compared to her."
John narrowed his eyes, "Speaking of which, what was that back there? You weren't supposed to put up that much of a fight."
Y/N replied cooly. "I still went along in the end. Isn't that all that matters?"
"..Yeah.."
"John," Cecile intervened, subject changing. "I don't know if you haven't realized, but because you decided to come after me, the whole school probably already knows that Remi is your next target. In fact, she's probably cooking up a plan to take you down as we speak."
"..So what? Let her prepare all she wants. I'll still crush her."
Hesitantly, the former press leader turned her head to the girl next to her. "Weren't you and Remi friends, Y/N? I mean—"
"Y/N can't do anything about it. I'm going to defeat Remi regardless of what she wants." John interrupted with a stern expression, tone steering into a darker turn.
"Do whatever you want. I don't care."
Y/N suddenly stood up from her position, rolling out her neck and stretching out her body, hearing the bones crack satisfyingly. She began heading out the door of the infirmary, stopping shoulder-to-shoulder with John. "Let me make something clear."
Eyes monotone and psychotic, she whispered into his ear, "I may be helping you with your little Joker parade, but.." The corner of her lip tugged upwards, tongue curling between her teeth.
"Don't think you can ever tell me what to do, when to do it, or how to do it."
The door slammed shut.
-
The past few days have been tough on Blyke. After getting completely annihilated by Joker in a crushing defeat, he's spent the following time training to get stronger. Even if his pride was bruised and torn down, he would only use it to improve himself.
Concentrating on his glowing red fingers, he stressed, It's already been a couple of days, but I'm still only able to shoot out of three fingers. This isn't a technique that can be perfected on the spot.
Joker...whoever this guy is, he's well-conversed in combat...and he's been exposed to countless abilities...he may have been hidden all this time, but he's been carefully analyzing and watching all of us. To be able to utilize an ever changing skill set so effectively, no doubt he's in a league of his own. Regardless, we have to reveal his true identity to the public! The school won't be at peace unless they have an answer!
Rubbing his sore forehead with a sigh, he broke his train of thoughts when he heard the door to the dorm click open. "Huh?"
"Oh, hey John. Welcome—....!!!"
The realization hit like a truck. The redhead stood there and stared at his fit, muscled roommate in disbelief at the possibility in his own mind.
"..?" John raised an eyebrow questioningly. "What are you staring at?"
"..Uh...n-nothing...I still have homework..bye!"
John scrunched his eyebrows from the strange encounter, sweat still dripping down his face from his daily jog. Wtf?
The next morning, Blyke absentmindedly walked through the school campus after a restless night. Could it be...?
"Hey Blyke!" A female voice yelled his name, causing him to jump.
"Ah, what the fuc—" Looking behind him with an exasperated face, he sighed, "Aw, come on Remi. Don't do that!"
She pouted. "Why didn't you wait up for us after class?"
"Oh, oops. I forgot."
"Yeah, right." Isen retorted with a snort. "Forgot, my ass.
"Shut up dude."
"Okay, someone's a little cranky today.."
Sensing the upcoming bickering, Remi nervously laughed, "So what did you guys think of the quiz today?"
Isen shrugged, "Easy. Just copied off the dude next to me."
"Wah..? Isen, that's no good!" The pinkette scolded. "What about you Blyke?" She took note of his lack of awareness. "Something bothering you Blyke? You seem pretty aloof today."
"..Mmm..well..I'm not completely sure yet, but.. I think I might have an idea on who Joker is—shit!"
He was so focused on talking that he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings, therefore colliding clumsily with another student in the path. Much like a cliche scene from an anime, he fell on top of the other student, who he now knew was a female.
"Ah, fuck—I'm so..sor..."
Wait a second..H/C hair... E/C and H/C eyes...
"...Y/N?!"
How the fuck did he fall on Y/N of all people?!
"Oh my god!" Remi gasped worriedly, rushing to the fallen girl's aid. "Y/N, are you okay?! Blyke, she's already injured! Be more careful!"
Blyke quickly stood up and dusted himself off, light pink dusting his cheeks. He offered her his hand, feeling her soft S/C palm grasp his own. "Shit, I'm so sorry Y/N. That was completely my fault—"
"Don't worry about it," Y/N brushed it off charmingly with ease. "I should've been paying attention too."
"How are your injuries holding up? I heard you fought with Joker yesterday. I was going to visit you in the infirmary today, but you're already out.." Remi said concerned.
Chuckling, Y/N replied gently, "I'm doing fine. Still hurts a bit though. I have to keep these bandages on for a few more days for my injuries to heal all the way. There's only so much my regeneration ability can do, you know?"
"That's a relief..." The pinkette breathed. "When I heard you fought with him, I was worried you might've been fatally injured. Who knows with how brutal Joker is with his victims..."
"Yeah..ha..."
Nobody questioned Isen's awkwardly silent figure on the side that was almost invisible.
The H/C girl turned to Blyke, "..So you were talking about him, right? I'm sorry, I couldn't help but overhear as we...well, ran into each other.."
"Yeah," Blyke cleared his throat. "As I was saying before..I think I may have an idea on who Joker is..."
-
"John?" Remi clarified again, clearly still not convinced. "What's your reasoning behind that?"
"Well, to be honest, there isn't much. It's just a strong feeling. I was wondering what Joker would be like at his weakest...and the idea hit me. If he didn't have any abilities copied, wouldn't that make him powerless? And John is a cripple. Ah, I don't know. Maybe I'm just overthinking it.
The orange haired boy shifted his feet back and forth. Dang, his intuition is really good. What's Y/N going to say? I'm positive she already knows John is Joker...
"Well," Y/N said thoughtfully, "I don't talk to John as much as I used to, but we did hang out a lot before..and there are definitely some fishy things about him. I don't know how to explain it either, but your gut feeling might be right, Blyke."
Remi hummed, "Hmm..Isen, what do you think? Do you know anything about John?"
"Huh?" He jumped.
A realization hit Blyke for the second time the past two days.
He accused, "Weren't you obsessing over him a while ago?! I remember you looking him up all the time! And when he moved in with me, you told me to be nicer to him!" He grabbed his collar angrily. "Isen, you fucking asshole! You've known since the beginning, didn't you?! What the hell is wrong with you?! You think this is funny? Watching us all struggle finding out Joker's identity?!"
"...no.." The boy muttered under his breath.
"Guys stop! Let's talk this out!" Remi pleaded.
"Talk it out?! My roommate is some fucking maniac, and my best friend hid it from me all along!"
Gritting his teeth, Isen spat, "This is exactly why I didn't say anything! Because your impulsive ass would only make things worse!"
"The situations already escalated to that point, asshole! Things can't get worse!"
"Just shut the fuck up dude. You don't even know what you're talking about!"
"Guys.." Y/N interrupted softly. They ignored it.
"..Guys!" She said again, this time with more emphasis, placing her hands on each of their shoulders. Both boys paused their argument to look at her immediately at the contact.
"We can't be fighting amongst ourselves like this. Wellston is already divided enough. We need to be honest and trust each other."
Remi added, "She's right. From now on, no more secrets, okay? That being said, Isen, explain yourself!"
Orange eyes hardened and focused, he went on, "...Ive thought over it dozens of times..knowing his identity isn't going to help. It'll only distract us. I mean, there's no proof. Who in their right mind, would ever believe that John is Joker? If I put that shit in the newspaper without any evidence to back it up, I'll become a laughing stock!"
"Well, if you need proof.." Y/N said. "Maybe try to jump him while he's weak, and force him to admit he's Joker? You'll need to be careful though, as you can see from my injuries...he's really strong. The more I think about it, the crazier it seems.. someone I was close friends with, is able to terrorize the school and beat me senseless. Can't trust anyone these days..."
Blyke and Remi shook their heads in sympathy for the poor girl, wanting to console her.
Meanwhile Isen tried not to crawl in the corner and cry until his body evaporated into the depths of hell. Holding in his urge to run away, he said shakily, "John's been posing as a cripple for over two years. He's clearly committed to the act! He's never give in. And remember, to the rest of the school, John's just an innocent dude who's been minding his business! Attacking him out of nowhere would make us look like a bunch of reckless high-tiers. Right now, we can't do anything."
"Damn it," Blyke cursed. "I tried so hard to be nice to him..."
"Why hasn't Arlo done anything about this?" Remi asked.
"Remi...Arlo was defeated by John ages ago.."
"What?!" The redhead yelled in disbelief. "No way! How is Remi supposed to beat him if Arlo couldn't even..."
The room became silent.
A few minutes later of processing this new information, Remi excused herself to find Arlo, who she desperately needed to clarify things with.
Y/N took the opportunity to excuse herself as well, eyes crinkling at Blyke. "I have to go study now. I hope everything works out." When she turned to Isen, her smile widened amusingly. He took that as a sign of intimidation, trying not to flinch.
This girl is seriously terrifying.
Hearing the click behind her, the smile on her face dropped into her usual stone expression. She walked through the empty hallways, tapping her fingernails along the lockers periodically.
Idiots. You can't defeat John at your current power. He'll destroy you, and you'll just become a stepping stone for his plan.
She laughed under her breath.
But you guys don't need to worry much.
I'm using him as a stepping stone for my plan as well.
•••
uwu it's been a while since a nice long 2k+ chapter
I've gotten so much amazing fan art these past couple of weeks and I can't thank y'all enough seriously. You guys really out there being whole professional artists
I really cried bruh
⬆️ by: @AkaneCantEnglish
there is just something so aesthetically pleasing about this drawing. I really love the monotone coloring and every detail is just—ugh. I hate you for being so talented. 😭😭 all jokes aside, tysm I love it
⬆️ By: @somerandomperson_34
this fanart is simple, yet so cute. The uniform is literally drawn perfectly and I absolutely love the color choices for the eyes and hair. thank you for spending your own time and effort to make me this ;')
⬆️ by: @millie484
I- just..no words. I was in awe of how beautifully drawn this piece was. It captures Y/N'a vibe so beautifully and just— THE TALENT POPPED OFF— thank you for sending me this wonderful masterpiece.
⬆️ By: @greeeeeeeeeennn
when I tell you I screamed— the psycho yandere killer vibes I got were just too good. everything is just amazing—the knife, the messy uniform, the smile— thank you.
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please never hesitate to send me fanart, messages, etc.
you have no idea how much they brighten up my day
once again, stay safe ily, see you next time 💫