Chapter 2: Fights, Friends, and Unseen Strength

He seemed in a terrible mood, face thunderous. One of the guys behind him tried to comfort him, "It's okay, Jake. So you can't fill her thermos anymore, no need to be so upset."

Jake scowled, kicking at a stray pebble. Typical Jake. His friends looked nervous, like they were waiting for him to explode, but he just grumbled under his breath.

Jake kicked him, clearly annoyed: "What do you know? I finally found something to do, and you idiots ruined my plan before I even got started. I like topping off her thermos, okay? It's my thing."

His voice was defensive, almost sulky. The other guys exchanged glances, clearly not used to seeing Jake like this. I bit back a smile.

Another guy pleaded, "Come on, Jake, pull yourself together. The guys from Lincoln High have been getting out of hand lately, picking on our students. We gotta show them what's what."

The mention of Lincoln High made everyone tense. Their crew had been causing trouble for weeks, and everyone was on edge. Jake rolled his eyes, but there was a flicker of something dangerous in his expression.

Jake snorted, "They wanna mess with our school? Good. I'm in a bad mood anyway—I'll deal with them this afternoon."

He cracked his knuckles, grinning in a way that made his friends both relieved and nervous. I shivered, not sure if it was the cold or the way he said it.

He turned the corner just as I did.

We almost collided, and for a split second, his tough facade slipped. I caught a flash of surprise in his eyes before he looked away, pretending not to notice me.

Someone tugged his sleeve, trying to warn him to stop talking, but Jake ignored him. "No one can stop me today. That fight's happening, no matter what."

His voice was low, but I could hear the stubbornness in it. The other guys looked worried, but no one dared argue.

He turned, and our eyes met. His fierce expression froze. He stepped back, nearly losing his balance.

For a second, I thought he might actually fall over. His friends grabbed his arms, steadying him, and I felt a weird pang of guilt for making him so nervous.

His friends rushed to steady him. "Jake, what's wrong? You okay?"

Jake was visibly regretful, his voice nothing like before: "Crap, I'm really done for now."

He sounded more like a kid who got caught sneaking cookies than the school’s resident bad boy. I almost laughed.

I was panicking inside too, but after a moment's hesitation, I pretended to be calm and walked past them. After a few steps, though, I turned and called, "Jake."

I surprised myself with how steady my voice was. Jake spun around, eyes wide, looking like he expected me to yell at him.

He hadn't expected me to call him. He straightened, a little flustered. "Y-yeah?"

His voice cracked a little, and his friends tried to stifle their grins. I almost felt sorry for him.

My voice was soft, but I hesitated for a second, nerves prickling under my skin: "Are you guys going to confront the Lincoln High kids today?"

Jake rubbed the back of his head, awkwardly explaining, "I... Actually, I don't really know how to fight. They're just dragging me along."

He looked down, scuffing his sneaker against the floor. I could see the tension in his jaw. It was hard to believe this was the same guy everyone was afraid of.

One of his friends looked shocked: "Jake?"

The guy’s jaw dropped, and Jake shot him a warning glare. I tried not to smile.

Jake's voice got quieter and quieter: "I'm not much of a fighter, and I don't like fighting. Really, everything can be solved peacefully..."

He trailed off, voice barely audible. I realized he was more nervous than I was.

I looked him in the eye and smiled. "I've heard from my class that Lincoln High's been picking on our students lately. Some of our classmates have even been extorted. I agree with what you said—we don't start trouble, but we aren't afraid of it either. So just be careful this afternoon, okay? I know you're tough, but keep it under control. Let them know Maple Heights isn't to be messed with."

The words tumbled out before I could stop them. I sounded way more confident than I felt, but Jake’s eyes lit up, and I felt a rush of pride.

I realized I'd said too much. When I looked up, Jake's eyes were shining, excitement clear in his dark gaze. Right then, he looked just like a loyal puppy. I suddenly felt awkward—why did I blurt all that out? So embarrassing!

I quickly looked away, mumbling, "Don't lose, and don't get hurt," before running off.

My face was on fire. I could hear his friends snickering behind me, but I didn’t dare look back. I just kept walking, hoping the ground would swallow me up.

Jake's friends were stunned. "Jake, how come she's not like the other straight-A kids? Shouldn't she be stopping us? It almost sounded like she was encouraging us."

One of the guys nudged Jake, eyebrows raised. Jake just grinned, looking happier than I’d ever seen him.

Jake watched me go, then laughed softly. "Damn, now I'm in even deeper."

He sounded almost giddy, like he couldn’t believe his luck. I ducked around the corner, clutching my books to my chest, heart pounding.

I'd already heard about the Lincoln High troublemakers. My deskmate, Hailey, was one of their victims—she'd been talking about revenge just yesterday.

Hailey was always plotting something. She was tough, but her eyes would light up when she talked about getting even. I admired her guts, even if I worried about her.

I tugged her sleeve, worried. "Fine, I'll go with you. I don't think you can handle it alone."

She rolled her eyes, but I could tell she was glad for the backup. Hailey always put on a brave front, but she hated going solo.

Hailey was my only friend. I couldn't let her go by herself, but she frowned at me: "Girl, you're the top student in our grade! How can I take you to something like that? If anything happened to you, the school would kill me."

She jabbed a finger at my shoulder, like she was scolding a little kid. I stuck out my tongue, trying to lighten the mood.

"But how could you win alone?"

Hailey waved it off: "I just can't swallow this. If you come, that's just one more person to worry about if things go south—how embarrassing! They stole my money and called us all nerds. The more I think about it, the angrier I get. Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

She tossed her hair over her shoulder, but I could see her hands shaking. I wanted to hug her, but I knew she’d just push me away.

Hailey ended up sneaking off for revenge while I was held up by a teacher. I was so frustrated—totally helpless to do anything. She came to school the next day with a black eye, grinning as I treated her wounds.

She winced as I dabbed at the bruise, but she was practically glowing. I tried not to scold her, but it was hard.

I sighed, "Doesn't it hurt?"

Her eyes sparkled, face flushed with excitement: "Not at all! I thought I was done for, but our class rep showed up out of nowhere, grabbed me by the collar, and pulled me to his side. I swear, he's always so cold, but he actually stepped in! He handed me my bag, rolled up his sleeves, and just went at them. He looked so cool! I touched his arm—under that hoodie, he's all muscle! Damn, he's so hot."

She fanned herself dramatically, and I had to laugh. Hailey had a way of making even a black eye sound like a badge of honor.

As Hailey rambled on, I glanced over at the quiet boy in the corner, wearing half-rim glasses and reading a thick book. Who knew the class rep was hiding so much?

He always seemed invisible, but now I saw him in a new light. Maybe everyone had their secrets.

I asked Hailey, "Did you win?"

She nodded furiously: "Of course! He took down everyone there without breaking a sweat. You should've seen him—dusting off his clothes in the middle of the crowd, then asking me, deadpan: 'Which hand did he hit you with?' Coolest thing ever."

She mimicked his expression, then winced again. I tried to be gentle, but her enthusiasm was contagious.

She got so worked up that she winced, pulling at her bruise. I softened my touch. "Hurts?"

Tears welled up in her eyes: "A little."

She blinked them away, trying to look tough. I squeezed her hand, wishing I could make it all better.

My gaze darkened. Thank goodness for the class rep—otherwise, Hailey would've been hurt even worse. But this whole mess with Lincoln High couldn't just be left alone.

I clenched my fists, feeling a surge of anger. Nobody should have to put up with this. I started plotting ways to help, even if it meant breaking a few rules. Guess I'm not as good as everyone thinks.

I've never really been a 'good kid' at heart. So when I overheard Jake planning to deal with those guys, I was honestly excited. I even wanted to ask him to take me along. But we barely knew each other—he'd never agree.

I bit my lip, wondering if I could just tag along anyway. Jake was intimidating, but he seemed to have his own code of honor. Maybe we weren’t so different after all.

Jake was famous for fighting, the most notorious across several schools, but he never started trouble. An eye for an eye isn't ideal, but sometimes it's the most direct and effective way. Some people hide behind their age as a shield, making it hard for them to face real consequences. Only when they're scared will they stop bullying others.

I remembered stories my brother used to tell me—about standing up to bullies, about never letting fear win. Sometimes, you had to fight back, even if it wasn’t fair.

My gut told me Jake and my brother were the same kind of person.

That thought made my chest ache a little. My brother had always protected me, even when it cost him everything.

Sure enough, the next day, news spread all over Maple Heights High: Lincoln High's gang had been beaten up. But by the time the story reached our class, it had already changed:

Rumors flew down the hallways, getting wilder with every retelling. By lunchtime, everyone had a different version of what happened. I couldn't help rolling my eyes at the latest wild tale.

"Hey, did you hear? Jake Johnson caused trouble again!"

"What happened?"

"I heard Lincoln High's gang ran into him by accident yesterday—bad luck for them. He was in a terrible mood and cornered them behind the gym. Beat them up good."

"Damn, that's wild. Those guys always act tough, but against Jake, they didn't even get a chance to fight back. And everyone knows his family has serious connections—no one dares mess with him. He showed up at school today like nothing happened."

"No wonder we haven't seen Lincoln High's thugs around! Class B's Jake Johnson really is scary."

Hailey listened in, giving a big thumbs up: "Serves them right. They picked the wrong guy this time."

She grinned, her black eye already fading. I couldn’t help but agree. Sometimes, you needed someone like Jake to keep the peace.

I couldn’t help smirking. So this is how Jake's reputation gets around.

I wondered if he cared about what people said, or if he just let it roll off his back. Either way, he never seemed to let it change him.

Sometimes, a bad reputation isn't the worst thing. There are too many cases of good people getting taken advantage of. It's the ones who pretend to be nice that are the real problem.

I’d seen it before—people who smiled to your face, then stabbed you in the back. Jake might be rough around the edges, but at least he was honest.