A/N: To all those who received the Vortege’s: How does it feel like knowing you got a car of your own, eh? Hehe, now if only this was real…

Chapter 9: Truth

Training Period, 10:47am

Jason cleaved through his target with ease. It wasn’t really that difficult, considering the fact that his sword was almost sharp enough to cut through most things, even other swords, too.

That’s what English-wrought iron-titanium alloy does for you…Jason said as he back-sung his sword once to hit another floating block of metal.

“Curious. How is it that the college itself finds the funds to continually provide these things for us to destroy? I mean, it’s metal, for crying out loud,” Jason asked Peter, who slashed 3 targets at once with his eyes closed.

“These things are magically enchanted to regenerate,” Peter said.

“Oh…” Jason muttered as he dodged an oncoming metal block.

“They explained that in the briefing last week. Weren’t you listening?” Eric asked, spinning to slice through 5 targets that were heading straight for him.

“You’re forgetting one simple thing,” Ken said, throwing his word to impale several metal blocks at once before it disappeared, apparating itself right back to him. ”This is Jason we’re talking about, remember?”

Chris remained silent as he fired 3 arrows at once, hitting 3 targets straight on the center. The rest on the other hand, chuckled rather appreciatively.

“Why the long face, Chris?” Terry asked, nudging him on the shoulder.

The bespectacled teen shook his head while Terry sighed.

“C’mon, it’s not something you can’t tell, is it?”

Chris now took a deep breath, lowering his bow for a second. He gathered that it was fine to tell Terry, since he trusted the boy well enough.

“Well, you see, it’s something to do with her...” he said, moving his head to the left to narrowly dodge a flying target. Behind him Chris heard a dull thunk! that meant Terry must have batted the target away.

Chris waited for a few seconds for Terry’s reply before firing another arrow, but got nothing.

“Terry, are you listening?” he asked, turning his head around. “Terry! Are you listeni-…oh.”

Behind him Terry laid unconscious with Gladius loosely held in one hand, and a metal block lying near him. Upon closer inspection, Chris saw that his face had a red patch similar to that of the block’s shape.

“Ooh…straight in the face…” he commented, wincing slightly. He then hollered out to the rest. “We got a man down here.”

“I’ll handle it!” he heard a girl reply. He then saw Rose walking up to Terry, her staff at the ready.

She then casted a healing spell on him, bright shimmers enveloping the boy.

Already several other students were gathering around him to see what was going on, the metal blocks now lying suspended in mid air, frozen by some unknown force.

“Is he alright?” Trisha asked, holstering her double pistols.

Terry started moving, and knelt before Rose. “Oh thank you, my fair princess,” he said, taking her hand in his.

The girl only blushed as others remained quite speechless. “Oh yeah, he’s perfectly fine now…” Michelle Lee muttered.

Then a metal block fell from nowhere and hit Terry squarely on the head as the others gasped or flinched. “What in the-” Terry asked aloud before a second one smashed directly onto the same spot.

“Why are there so many stars in the daytime?” he asked drunkenly before plopping onto the floor, remaining motionless.

Ken and Peter each took a piece and examined it. The 2 pieces were in fact halves of one cylinder, cut cleanly in half. Ken could even see his own reflection on the cut.

The rest all looked up to see someone sitting atop a floating metal block above them with his legs crossed and a katana on his left hand. Leon.

“The baka’s fine. He actually smashed the blunt end of Gladius on his head once by accident and he came out of that fit as a fiddle,” Leon said, shaking his legs. Ken was quite curious as to how Leon actually got up there.

“Grr…Leon!” Terry bellowed. Ken looked down to see Terry getting up, rubbing his head. He then grabbed Gladius in his right hand and steadied it.

“What’s he gonna do? That sword’s too heavy for him to jump with,” Jason gathered. Then Terry did something rather unexpected. He threw the sword at Leon.

Leaping off, the bespectacled brunette tumble-rolled once as the buster sword smashed the block Leon was on to shards.

Before he even hit the floor, Terry met him halfway as Gladius reappeared in his right hand. “You’re finished!” he barked as he swung it once, Leon using the katana to deflect the sword.

Landing on the floor, Leon only dusted the dirt off his white t-shirt. Terry landed just as swiftly, with the exception that his buster sword sank into the surface.

“Clear the field!” Peter bellowed, everyone running away from the football field.

“You’re so done for, Leon!” Terry roared, swinging the sword at Leon once more, who leapt up to dodge it.

Stopping mid-swing, Terry straightened the sword and slashed it upwards at Leon, who countered it. The force of the blow however sent him flying up.

“Shouldn’t someone stop them?” Rose asked Peter worriedly, who shook his head. “They love to get into a spar once in awhile. They both claimed it’s an attention-drawer,” the brown-haired boy said, smirking.

“Sparring?? They’re at each other’s throats!” Trisha exclaimed.

“That’s how they roll,” Jason shrugged. “Why? Worried about one of them?”

“Oh shut up,” Trisha bit back, watching the fight/spar.

“I’m not as slow as before, Leon!” Terry said with a smile, swinging Gladius several times in a heartbeat, Leon sidestepping several times to evade it.

“I beg to differ,” he said, his M4 now replacing his sword. He fired his entire clip at Terry, who parried it all with Gladius.

“It’ll take more than bullets to stop magically-wrought iron, Leon,” Terry smirked.

“How ‘bout this then?” Leon asked in return, his right hand holding onto the grenade launcher attachment.

Terry only looked on with utter horror. “Oh shi-”

Terry then disappeared under a screen of fire and smoke combined, a loud boom making the others wince.

“No way could he survive that!” Jason said happily, Rose merely looking at him with a reproachful glare.

When the dust cleared and Leon reloaded his M4, Terry remained where he stood, the front end of his sword blackened by the blast. Ah, he used it as a shield, then…

Looking at the sword, Terry only growled. “Do you know how long it’ll take to polish this off?!”

“Just withdraw it and summon it again, dummy,” Leon said, Terry following as he said. When he summoned it again, the sword appeared with nary a black mark on it.

“Oh,” the boy said, then shrugging.

“Geez, I thought you’d have figured that trick out by now,” Leon said, walking towards him as he kept his rifle.

“What is he thinking? Terry still has his weapon drawn!” Eric hissed.

Chris merely shook his head. “The fight’s over. These things hardly last more than 5 minutes each.”

“What? That’s it?” another student asked. The question was answered as Terry got Leon into a playful headlock.

“Geez, why are they both so immature?” another one asked looking quite annoyed.

Rose giggled as she finally got what Jason meant.

“Well, that’s how they roll.”

*

Chris couldn’t exactly pinpoint a fact. Ironic, since he was the best archer in his year.

Ken sat next to him and nudged him on the shoulder. “Hey, what’s wrong with you? You’ve been this way for the past few days already.”

Chris merely shrugged as he stirred his bowl of porridge aimlessly. He wasn’t really hungry in the first place, so why did he even bother to buy lunch?

Ken clicked his teeth and sighed. “Is it about Vivian?”

Chris was starting to believe that this twin telepathy thing was actually beginning to sound plausible.

Then again, maybe the rest only knew him too well?

Chris nodded. “I knew it. Y’know, you’re not that hard to figure out, man,” Ken scoffed. Okay, it was the latter, then.

“So, what? She rejected you or something?” Ken asked. Chris merely leered at him behind his spectacles before looking down at his porridge again.

“It’s this new guy…” Chris muttered.

“What? Adam? Dude, doesn’t he like have a girlfriend already?” Ken asked.

“No, not him. Him,” Chris growled, nudging his head forward, indicating the a few tables in front of him.

Ken could see Vivian talking with someone he couldn’t identify. He was around the same age as they were, this much he was certain.

“Who is that? I’ve never seen him around before,” Ken commented.

Chris merely shook his head. “He’s new. But it looks like he’s known Vivian for quite some time.”

“Then go and ask her about him already,” Ken said.

“I’d be too obvious if I did that. She’s been spending more time with him than with me for the past couple of days….” Chris muttered, looking wistfully at her.

Ken only ran a hand through his brother’s shoulder and clicked his teeth again. “C’mon, cheer up, man. Maybe he’s her cousin or something,” Ken convinced.

“Yeah, maybe…” Chris said. In the back of his mind, he was hoping that Ken was right. It was a weak wish, he knew that. But that was all he had to go by, for now…

*

“Poor guy…” Jason muttered to Eric, looking at Chris staring out the window in class.

“What’s up with him? He hardly daydreams, let alone on his favorite subject,” Eric said in return, adjusting his specs.

“Girl trouble,” Jason simply replied, scribbling something on his book.

“Ah, Vivian again? That boy needs to find himself another girl,” Eric scoffed, Jason hitting him once on the back of his head.

“Dude, he’s been after Vivian since high school. He’s convinced that she’s the one,” Jason muttered.

“Way too early for stuff like this,” Eric said, listening intently to the teacher. Jason didn’t really need to pay close attention. He already knew this topic like the back of his hand.

*

Chris had to find out. There was no 2 ways about it. Not this time.

Since he now had his own car, he didn’t really have to tag along with Ken for a ride back. Hence, he could tail Vivian and that boy as they both were strolling by the campus park.

It didn’t feel like the right thing to do, but Chris felt that there was no other choice. He couldn’t just confront them head-on, right?

But as far as he could see, they were having a really good time with each other, and it tugged him so much that he was beginning to feel annoyed by it.

“Haha, James, that’s lame, man!” he heard her giggle. At least he knew his name. James…but wait, wasn’t she just saying that something about him was lame?

“Hey, you used to think it was funny, right?” the boy asked in return, Vivian smiling warmly at him. Chris’s heart fell. She hardly smiled at him like that.

They both then sat on a bench, Chris hiding by the tree nearby. Oh please don’t let anyone catch me…he prayed.

He watched them intently as they both just sat on the bench and stared into the clear blue lake.

“Y’know, Viv, It’s been to long since we last hung out like this…” James suddenly said, stretching an arm out to wrap it around Vivian.

Chris balled his hands into a fist and gritted his teeth. Never before had he hated a guy he barely knew this badly. He was so tempted to take Highwind and put an arrow through James’s head.

“I know, James, but I don’t think it’s time for this right now,” Vivian giggled once more, taking James’s arm off her shoulder.

Hah! Serves you right! Chris smirked.

“Aw…But Viv~” James pleaded. Geez, this guy’s pathetic…Chris thought coldly.

“No buts, James. Besides, this is a public place…We should find a more…seclusive spot,” Vivian replied teasingly.

What?! Chris yelled in his mind. That was when he lost his grip and fell from the branch he was tip-toeing on.

Tumbling uncontrollably, he landed on the pavement that was of all things, directly in front of Vivian and that James guy.

“Oh!” Vivian gasped as Chris stumbled to get up. “Chris! What happened??”

“Ouch…I-I was jogging, and lost my footing. I tumbled down a little, that’s all,” Chris said nervously.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” she asked, taking his arm to inspect it. Chris’s heart skipped a beat. Wait. She’s concerned about me? Maybe there was hope for him yet…

“I-I’m fine, Viv. Thanks,” Chris said, holding onto her hand. Forget James, Viv. I’m here now…

A rather loud cough brought both of them back to reality all too soon. Chris practically leered at James. Get lost, dammit!

“Oh, sorry. I haven’t introduced you 2 yet. James, this is Chris Hoh. Chris, this is James Khoo,” Vivian introduced.

“Nice to meet you, Chris,” James said with a smile sincere enough. “Same here,” Chris said, shaking his hand. He immediately let go not a moment too soon.

“So…Vivian, how do you know James?” he asked, praying that neither she, nor James would catch the hint.

“Well, James and I go way back, since elementary school,” she said with a slight tinkle in her voice.

“Oh,” Chris muttered. Childhood friends. Great.

“Yeah, I’ve know Vivian since she was a little girl,” James said, Vivian laughing. No one asked you, smart-ass.

“So Chris, how do you know Vivian?”

Chris was rather taken aback by the question, but found it to be fair to answer the same question he suddenly asked mere moments ago.

“Oh, I’ve known Vivian since high school,” Chris plainly said. Compared to how long Chris knew Vivian, this was a poor comparison.

“Chris? What’s wrong?” she asked, looking at him with the same worried expression as earlier.

“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing,” Chris said, faking a smile.

“Anyway,” James began, Chris leering at him again. Don’t you ever shut up?

“I was just gonna ask Viv here about a promise we made under a certain tree in Form 3,” he said slyly, Vivian turning red.

“James! Not in front of Chris!” she said, giggling girlishly.

What? What is it? Chris thought, not wanting to know what the answer was, yet not able to resist knowing.

“Go ahead and tell him, Viv! He’s bound to get a laugh from it!” James said.

“No, no, I can’t,” Vivian said, still laughing.

“No, it’s alright, Vivian. I can handle it,” Chris said. Could he, really?

“Okay, okay, fine! Geez, you both are so troublesome,” she said, James grinning. Oh how I’d like to smash those pearly-whites off that smug face of yours….

“Okay, when we were both younger, we made a silly promise under this tree. See, James was going to live in England after that, and he just came back recently, so we made that promise,” Vivian began.

“Oh just tell him already!” James said with a chuckle.

“I was getting to that, thank-you-very much,” Vivian said, leering at him playfully.

*- Okay, for this next segment, please go to {youtube(dot)com/watch?v=7oMfo1NiOEc} while reading the next few lines. It adds to the mood =) -*

“Okay, we both promised that day that if he ever came back to Malaysia, we would get married to each other, no matter how long we’d have to wait.”

“And we’re still keeping that promise, right?” James asked cheekily, Vivian swatting him playfully on the arm.

“Stop it, dummy! So was that funny, Chris?” Vivian asked, turning to smile at him.

Chris couldn’t even blink. What she said earlier hit him deep in the chest so badly that he couldn’t even budge.

“Chris?”

He tried to answer, but noticed that he was out of breath. He forgot to breath, of all things.

“Y-Yeah, it was funny,” Chris said, faking a weak smile.

”Then why weren’t you laughing?” James asked. Chris was too preoccupied to even think of a comeback.

“B-But it was a kid’s promise, right? I mean, you still don’t think you’re both bound to that promise, right?” Chris asked, trying his best to keep a straight face.

Both Vivian and James merely stared at Chris for a second, and then exchanged grins.

“Actually…” she said, shyly showing her left hand. She then pointed to a gold ring on her index finger; one that Chris always saw her wear. Then James showed a matching one on his left hand.

Oh no. Oh no-no-no!!!

“Yup. I gave her that ring before I left for England,” James said, Vivian blushing.

“So you’re both engaged?” Chris asked, still trying to remain calm.

Vivian blushed even deeper as she batted hand.

“No, silly!” she said, giggling.

“We’re gonna take it step-by-step. Girlfriend-boyfriend at first, and then after that…” James said with a grin, Vivian swatting him again.

“Chris?” Vivian asked again after seeing Chris stare deep into the bench for some reason. What was wrong with him, she wondered?

“Listen, Viv, I gotta go, okay? I forgot that I need Ken to give me a ride back home,” he said to her, looking apologetic. Or was it something else?

“Oh, okay, sure. Bye Chris,” she said, waving him goodbye as he sped off in one particular direction, not even bothering to say goodbye to her. Strange, this was the only time he ever didn’t say goodbye. Why was that?

*

“Well, we sure showed them a thing or two back there, didn’t we?” Terry asked Leon, who only shrugged as they both were walking to the parking lot.

“Hey, we really cut a close one back there, didn’t we? I mean, you weren’t kidding with Gladius, weren’t you?” he scoffed.

“Well you dropped 2 blocks on my head that were made out of metal. Metal!” Terry said, tapping his head.

“Well, I figured it wouldn’t hurt much since you have a thick skull and all…” Leon said, Terry scowling at him.

“Damn you,” he seethed.

“Hey, you were the one that was getting all comfy with her,” Leon bit back.

“What can I say? I’m a go-for-it kinda guy,” Terry said, shrugging with a smirk.

“Do that again and next time you’ll be known as the went-for-it-but-never-returned kinda guy,” Leon growled, Terry laughing.

But the laughter died almost immediately as they heard someone crying.

“What the-?” Leon muttered, heading towards the source.

He found someone sitting by a secluded corner, sobbing softly.

It was when he saw the clothes, then did he recognize who it was.

“Chris?”

The boy barely looked up, but sniffed.

“Dude, what’s the matter?” Terry asked, sitting by him as Leon crouched in front of Chris.

“Chris, what happened?” Leon asked, this time much more sternly.

“It’s not fair…”

“What?” both Leon and Terry asked at the same time.

“It-It’s not fair…Love isn’t a game of finders-keepers…”

Leon and Terry looked at each other for a second before Leon mouthed one word. Vivian.

“Chris, what happened between you and Vivian?” Leon asked, putting a hand on Chris’s shoulder. Chris was one of Leon’s oldest friends. Seeing him hurt like this was very unsettling.

Chris remained silent for the next few seconds, save for the occasional sniff.

“It’s…It’s that new guy she’s always hanging around with…” Chris muttered.

“What about him?” Terry asked, patting Chris’s back.

“S-She’s engaged to him!” Chris yelled before bursting once more into tears. Both Leon and Terry exchanged looks of utter horror. They had never seen anyone like this before, let alone Chris.

Both of them could do nothing but stay there and try their best to comfort him. Neither knew how something like this could happen, but they both knew one thing.

Chris was right. It wasn’t fair.

It never was.

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A/N: There. How did that work out for you? Did you go to the Youtube link like I told you to?

Want to know how things will turn out? Wait till the next chapter. Until then, hold on tight, guys.