Ronnie stood in front of me with a hopeful gaze. I kept my attention to the book I was reading, finding it more interesting than this idiot who kept standing in front of me.

“I came here to hear your answer, Hiro,” he said.

The two girls standing behind him looked anxious. After all, they were inside my territory. No one dares to come in this room without permission and only a few were invited to enter. One wrong move and they won’t be coming out of this room alive.

I could feel the guys giving the student council president a grim look, observing him closely if ever he tries to do something.

Not like he could do anything to me anyway. Ronnie Castillo was a coward who stole the student council president’s position from Anthony last election. If it wasn’t for Anthony’s laid-back personality, I’m sure this moron would have been dead by now.

“This is going to be my last term as the president, Hiro and I chose to take over for me after I retire,” he repeated the same words he told me last week.

I could feel his heated gaze behind the thick glasses he was wearing. Ronnie’s always been a hypocrite and arrogant. He’s campaigning to the senior high department that he was a better choice than Anthony, who he kept on calling the son of a syndicate which was by far, not that uncommon in this place. North Vale caters to the sons and daughters of the people from the underground world.

I closed the book I was reading, took my feet off of the desk and stood up. I towered him my height and I felt him shudder. The girls behind him couldn’t even look at me, obviously afraid and intimidated by my presence.

“Do you know that you’re annoying me, president,” I sarcastically informed.

“B-but…!”

“You don’t want me when I’m annoyed so I suggest you better leave this fucking room before it’s too late.”

Ronnie stumbled to get away from me, leaving his bitches who came running after him. When he got out of the room, Clark came in, amused by Ronnie fleeing.

“Where’d you go?” I asked Clark.

He closed the door behind him and neared a random freshman to take his cigarette. The kid gave him his box and lit it up for Clark before approaching me.

“I fucked Ocampos,” he answered.

“Woah,” Lorenzo reacted, giving Clark a smirk, “the Science teacher?”

“Yeah. She gives nice blowjobs but her pussy’s getting loose,” Clark commented, blowing the cigarette out of his nostrils.

Lorenzo laughed out loud.

“She’s been one of your fuck toys for months and you’ve already broke her pussy?” he teased.

Clark shrugged his shoulders. He then looked at me and said, “Ronnie really wants you to run for presidency.”

I walked out of the room and Clark followed me.

“I’m not interested.”

“Is Tony gonna run for the position?” he asked, closing the door of my den.

“Not sure,” I replied, “maybe?”

“He let Ronnie steal the position from his 6 months ago? Doesn’t it hurt his pride?” Clark inquired.

I smirked.

“That idiot doesn’t care.”

“That’s true.”

I looked at Clark, pulled the cigarette stick out of his mouth to smoke it.

“How about you? I heard someone’s scouting you to become a member of the council,” I said.

Clark leaned against the wall.

“I’m thinking about it. They say the school provides you money when you become a member,” he answered.

I rolled my eyes at him.

“You do know that your parents are not jobless, right?”

Clark snorted.

“I know. This money is for me.”

I sighed. My phone rang and both me and Clark looked at each other before I took it out of my pocket.

Seeing Carlos’ name in the screen, I grunted. Clark saw my reaction and raised a brow.

“Who is it?”

“Carlos,” I replied.

I answered the call and waited for him to talk.

“Hiro,” Carlos started, “I need your services.”

“Shocking,” I sarcastically replied, making me smirk after hearing him click his tongue.

“Tonight, at the Black Saloon. I’ll bring someone over. Teach him a lesson. Ah, and I need to talk to you about something. I’ll set up a meeting next week. Bring Clark with you, if you can.”

I narrowed my eyes after hearing Clark’s name.

“Why do you need him?” I asked.

I’m not comfortable every time Carlos ask for Clark. I’m not going to let him use him for whatever dire reasons he have.

“Just bring him if you can.”

I didn’t even wait for him to speak when I hung the phone up. I gave back Clark’s cigarette and walked away.

“What happened?” he asked.

“Gather the men tonight at the Black Saloon. Carlos is gonna give us a gift.”

--

I heard the school bell but I ignored it since I wasn’t in the mood to attend afternoon classes. I went to the dorm building instead, planning to sleep until 7 p.m. Whatever Carlos wanted me to do, I’m sure it would last until morning.

I was about to enter the dorms but my phone rang, yet again. I read Maria’s message and she was asking me to pick up Evan from the the elementary building.

Maria

Please pick up Evan from his class.

He’s feeling sick and I’m in a meeting.

Let him stay with you for the time being.

It takes half an hour to go to the elementary building. It’s rare for him to get sick and it made me worry.

I called Evan’s number and a few seconds later, my little cousin answered.

“Kuya [brother] Hiro…I…don’t feel…good,” he complained.

His voice was dry and I could hear him wheezing, he’s definitely not feeling well.

“I’m coming over there to pick you up.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

--

There were a few cars parked in the elementary building, which was located to the south wing of North Vale. There were kids playing in the playground, chasing each other while others play with their phones and consoles. North Vale prohibit their students of going out of the school without a valid reason. This school served as a prisoner to the juveniles while younger students who got in were either orphans, kids who got sold to the Mafia, kids who were involved in human trafficking and so on and so forth. I know there’s a business going in and around of the elementary building where students who gets the lowest grades were being sold in an auction, catering to pedophiles all around the world.

Every student attending North Vale were far from being innocent. We don’t have the same kind of life like normal children. Some liked that kind of life, living in the dark and indulging themselves in being evil while others fight their fate, studying hard and obediently following orders from the gang groups and student council offices to graduate North Vale.

I went straight to the clinic. The guard saw me entering, realizing who I was. He let me enter without a hitch.

When I arrived at the clinic, the nurse got out. She saw me and gasped out loud in horror.

“H-Hiro Blaise!” she yelled my name, panicking while I come near her.

The stiff expression on my face didn’t change as I came to talk to the nurse.

“Where’s Evan?” I asked, dropping all the impolite act to someone who was older than me.

“Evan Aquino? He’s inside.”

“What happened to him?”

The nurse backed away from me, scared shitless for some reason even though I haven’t done anything but ask him about my cousin.

“H-he…he’s…he got into a fight at lunch,” she truthfully answered.

Something tick inside me. The nurse noticed the scowl I was sporting, making her shiver.

“T-the kids who fought with him are already under the student council! They’re being punished now!”

I pushed her aside to get in. I searched for Evan and found him lying in the second bedroom. The first thing I saw his forehead covered in bandage. He had a black in the right and a busted lip. I silently approached the bed. He was sleeping, his face scrunched from the pain of being beaten up.

“Evan,” I softly called.

He struggled to open his aching eye, frowning at the sight of me.

“K-kuya [b-brother] Hiro,” he called.

He was shaking, I wasn’t sure if it’s from anger or frustration.

“What happened?” I asked.

Evan lowered his head from shame. He couldn’t even look straight into my eyes.

“T-they…they said…my mom’s a bad woman…and that dad’s only using her for money…a-and that ate [sister] Maria is a bitch,” he confessed, breaking into a sob. “T-they said…I…I have…gay uncles…and that I’m disgusting…because I’m going to be gay too…because…it’s in our genes…”

I narrowed my eyes at him. What the fuck kind of logic was that?

“T-they also said…t-that kuya is [brother] a psycho,” Evan added.

“Do you believe them?” I asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“No!” Evan barked, teary-eyed while looking at me. “Mama is the best in the whole world and I know papa really loves her! I know he sacrificed a lot of things to be with mama! A-and sometimes, ate Maria [sister] is a bitch but she still cares for me and she’s awesome and she really loves me! I know that!”

“What about me?” I asked.

He lowered his head, held the edge of my shirt and pouted.

“Uncle Earl and uncle Matthias, I don’t care if they’re gay…it’s not a big deal to me. They’re nice and they give me a lot of stuff when we visit them a-and…you’re…you’re not a psycho, kuya [brother] Hiro,” Evan shyly said. “It’s just who you are.”

I smiled at him.

Not a psychopath, huh?

“What do you want me to do then?”

Evan lifted his head to look at me.

“Huh?”

“You know what I do, right?”

He shuddered, nodding.

“Y-yes.”

“Then tell me what you want me to do. Do you want me to punish those people who made fun of our family?” I asked, smirking at Evan.

Evan’s eyes widened and I saw the same kind of look whenever Matthias’ sadistic side gets turn on.

“I want you to…hurt them too.”

“Okay.”

--

Opening the door of the elementary student council office, I was greeted by the sight of their president, a 6th grader, who was sitting on the desk while making out with another student. He saw me entering and was surprised.

“What are you doing here, Hiro Blaise?” he asked.

I couldn’t remember the name of this cunt but who cares, it’s not like he’s worth remembering. Looking to the right, I saw a group of guys, who I only knew by face because they were Evan’s classmates. They were playing with their consoles, smoking cigarettes.Cans and bottles of beers scattered on the table.

“The fuck are you doing here, psycho?” the biggest of them all, who I assumed was their leader, spoke.

He was a bald kid, squinty eyes and thin lips. Huge in proportion but half my height.

“Are you done killing people?” another one added and the others laughed in mockery.

The student council president was getting nervous from how the conversation was going.

“Chong, wait a minute…”

“Shut the fuck up, Atienza!” the leader yelled, standing up.

So his name was Chong.

“You think just because you belong to a foreign Mafia means you can do anything you want here?! For your fucking information, we own this country!” he screamed while his boys hollered in agreement.

I blinked at him, staying quiet and listening to his dramatic speech.

“My dad owns the Torres-Shao and that means we own your family! You got that, intsik (1)?!”

My eye twitched from his derogatory claims about me being Chinese. I’m half-Japanese, you fucking moron.

Sighing from this stupidity, I looked at the president. I know he couldn’t do any kind of punishment to these brats because he’s afraid. They belonged to the local mob and growing up with a silver spoon, they think they rule this school.

“You better run now, kid,” I said to the president who quickly button his dress shirt, nodding in understanding.

He tugged his girl and scampered out of the council office. I closed the door behind me, twisting the lock before running a hand through my hair.

“You’re too young to be thinking that you own this place, Chong,” I said, sarcastically speaking his surname.

--