Saving the Villain

"Do you hear me, class? This year, you guys need to step up your game! Your grades last school year barely crossed the passing grades!" The section F of the junior year homeroom teacher sighed in distress, expressing his dismay at this class. Since it was the first day of school, he didn\'t start his lesson but instead encouraged the students to do better this school year.

Although this last section was hopeless, filled with a bunch of \'slow-witted\' students, the fire in the homeroom\'s teacher\'s eyes was just as bright as a wildfire. All he hoped was these students could feel his determination and do better this year.

While the homeroom teacher encouraged everyone to the point, he looked a bit desperate; it was suspicious. Cosette glanced at Luke.

\'What did he say earlier?\' she wondered, snapping her eyes as she looked at the teacher in the front. She was certain Luke said something earlier, and the look in his eyes told her it was something important. The reason, even though she wanted to focus on the teacher\'s dramatic encouragements, a part of her brain was wandering somewhere else.

Apparently, Cosette wasn\'t the only one who was zoning out. The person on her left, Maxen, was also deep in thought.

\'Is there a way to finish this year without violence involved?\' he wondered, assuming those troublemakers who had dragged him into the world of the delinquents were having a second chance in this school. \'Surely, this school is a lot more forgiving.\'

A deep exhale slipped past Maxen\'s lips, feeling his head throb at the things that were going through his head. Even though he was confident they wouldn\'t be able to beat him, he didn\'t want to raise his fist just because they were picking on him again.

Cosette specifically told him to be good and don\'t resort to violence. It was her one and only request. Maxen wanted to uphold that, and also to prove he was better than that. Still, he knew those people.

Those bullies might be underaged, but they were already associated with dangerous gangs. They had dealt with illegal things, which made them all-powerful and such. \'Hanging\' out with them forced Maxen to pick up bad habits, such as drinking and smoking.

\'I can\'t let them take an interest in her.\' Maxen glanced at Cosette and saw her staring at the homeroom teacher ahead. \'Is that even possible?\'

He winced at the thought of Cosette. Even if Maxen would try his best for Cosette not to stand out, it was futile. Her face alone would attract anyone\'s attention. He might be biased regarding this, but in his eyes, there was no one who looked better than her.

\'Damn it!\' he secretly ground his teeth, clicking his tongue, facing the window. \'Not to mention that spoiled brat.\'

Maxen was at his wit\'s end, trying to think of ways to deal with the horror of his past as silently as possible. After all, those people could go so low as to hurt women or the innocents. What made it worse was that they often act in groups.

\'Fucking cowards.\' Maxen snapped his tongue in irritation once more, propping his jaw with his knuckles. \'Our homeroom teacher is literally begging us to do better. I sympathized with him for once… but I can only hope those guys will leave me alone.\'

Deep down, Maxen knew that was an impossible wish. After all, he was in a situation with them and had witnessed something he shouldn\'t have. Not to mention, what Luke exhibited this morning was akin to inviting those guys\' attention. Even though Luke\'s reasoning was cunning and smart, he would be in danger if they ganged up on him.

They said School was the second home of the students, but for Maxen, used to be his second hell. Only last year did he see this place in a different light, and… he wanted to keep it that way.

Meanwhile, Luke wasn\'t in any better mental state. His eyes might have stayed on the homeroom teacher\'s figure, but his mind was drifting. But just like Maxen and Cosette, who were distracted by their own thoughts, Luke was still partially aware of their teacher\'s sentiments.

\'That guy…\' he mentally clicked his tongue, shifting his thoughts about Maxen and those bullies he encountered on the stairs. Since Luke ran a background check on Maxen after their first meeting, Luke was aware of Maxen\'s background and school life.

One particular detail that caught Luke\'s attention was that Maxen was considered a delinquent. However, Maxen didn\'t seem the type in his eyes. If anything, Maxen looked like the one who was getting bullied.

Although Maxen was ballsy and had this arrogant attitude that would deter anyone from pitying him for getting bullied because he was stubborn and fights back, Luke was certain Maxen wouldn\'t exploit others for his own gain. If this was in the past, he would believe it just as easily as he did initially. But after getting to know Maxen, Luke had figured the guy has a pride much taller than him.

\'Deal with them quickly — hah! As if! If only I know, he will let those goons trapped in teens\' bodies trample him if I didn\'t come. He knew Cosette always follow him like a shadow! Is he so naive for thinking their attention will remain on him?!\' Luke\'s expression turned more sour the more he thought about Maxen and this bullshit called principles. \'He\'s stressing me out and yet, he still has the nerve to bitch on me. I should just let him get bullied and hog Cozie all for myself.\'

Luke folded his arms under his chest, watching the homeroom teacher finish his sentiments grumpily. If he was a bit more heartless, he would rather befriend the bullies and bully Maxen together. However, Cosette would hate him for that.

\'She already…\' Luke\'s thoughts trailed off, arching a brow. The side of his lips curled up into a cunning smirk as his eyes glinted, having this idea in his mind. He leaned back, looking past Cosette\'s figure to Maxen.

For some odd reason, Maxen shuddered upon sensing someone\'s gaze on his back. When he looked back, his under-eye twitched, seeing the wicked grin on Luke\'s face. The latter wiggled his brows playfully, making Maxen knit his brows.

\'What is he planning now?\' Maxen wondered, scrunching his nose up in dismay. \'After giving me a problem to think about… that smile is creepy.\'

Maxen shook his head and looked away while Luke set his glinting eyes ahead, smirking like a devil.

"Alright. That\'s all for today. Study hard, please!" the homeroom teacher huffed. They got his message across. However, when he glossed his eyes over his student\'s lazy faces, he nearly wept. He put his heart out there, but by the looks of it, nothing went past his class\'s head. Why were they all zoning out?!

\'This is over,\' he thought. \'They\'re a hopeless bunch.\'

"Don\'t worry, Sir! I will surely carry this class and surpass the top student in section A!" Luke raised his head and grinned, giving their homeroom teacher some hope.

Everyone looked in Luke\'s direction with awe and puzzlement, and that includes Cosette. Seeing the excited and confident grin on his face, Cosette smiled subtly.

\'I guess he\'s fine now,\' she thought, looking back at the surprised teacher in the front. Her lips stretched from ear to ear. Although she had been distracted, she was able to grasp the unspoken reason their homeroom teacher was encouraging them to study well.

"Don\'t worry, Teacher Hong. We will surely study well and not embarrass you," Cosette backed up Luke\'s encouragement with a wide smile. "I can\'t also keep disappointing my dad with my poor grades."

Maxen glanced at the two of them, and then at the teacher. \'Hah… look at him as if he just met his saviors. Doesn\'t he have any sense of pride left?\' — however, Maxen couldn\'t really blame their teacher.

The students weren\'t aware of which school Cosette and Luke came from. However, the faculty members knew that these students came from the most prestigious academy in the country. It was already a surprise how a top student, such as Cosette, would fall into the last section.

\'Now that I think about it, I understand if Luke fell on the last section. I heard he was barely doing well in that academy.\' Maxen glanced at Cosette\'s side profile, ignoring his other classmates, who also followed in encouraging their homeroom teacher, promising they would study hard. These students were drawn to the two of them; Cosette and Luke could even start a cult with so many students admiring them and following in their footsteps.

\'It never crossed me before, but why did Cosette end up in the worst section?\' he wondered, keeping his eyes on Cosette, who was now smiling even brighter as the homeroom teacher felt revitalized with his students\' determination to do their best. \'Is it… because of me again? But how did she know that I\'m in this class? A background check?\'