After school, the Untouchables separated at the gate, Dex going with Ethan, and Kareem going with Nia and Chloe.
"Oh yeah, Chloe, when we were in that mountain, how come the falling rocks seemed to avoid you? I mean, you were walking right there, right under them," Nia asked.
"I was just lucky, I guess," Chloe responded, winking at Nia.
"Seriously, Chloe?" Nia said.
"Girls, girls, girls, would you focus, please? Can't you see there's a handsome young man walking with you?" Kareem interrupted.
They burst out laughing, and he couldn't help but feel a little offended.
"So, Mr. Wizard, have you learned how to do any spells yet?" Chloe asked, curious.
"That book is a complete waste of time. I opened it, and all that was written inside was gibberish. I couldn't understand a single thing," he said, remembering how frustrated he was after trying to read the magic book he got from the Orb.
Nia burst out laughing. "What kind of wizard can't do any magic?"
"Don't worry, Kareem. Maybe you didn't try hard enough or something," Chloe said, trying to reassure him.
After a while of walking, Nia stopped.
"My turn is right over here, guys. It's time for me to leave you two lovebirds to yourselves."
"Nia, stop it," Chloe said, blushing a bit.
They said their goodbyes to Nia and continued walking. Kareem looked at Chloe and couldn't help but remember his almost-kiss moment with her while they were on the mountain. He got a bit embarrassed, not knowing how to start a conversation.
They walked in silence for a little while, then he remembered something.
"Chloe, when we were on that mountain, I remember you screaming when we heard that sad roar. It seemed to have affected you more than us. Are you okay?" he asked.
She looked down, she was still shaken up by what happened on the mountain.
"I don't want you to think I'm crazy."
Kareem looked at her, and he could see that something big, something truly traumatic, must've happened to her. "I would never think you're crazy, Chloe."
She looked at him, then looked down. "I'm not ready to tell you, but all I can say is we should've never gone to that mountain. We messed up big, Kareem. Something is coming, something big."
Kareem's heart skipped a beat. He could tell she was serious. They walked in silence for a while, then stopped at another turn.
"This is my turn. I'll see you tomorrow, Kareem," Chloe said.
"Sorry I brought that mountain shit up. I was a bit nervous," Kareem apologized.
Chloe let out a small laugh, then surprised him with a hug. She held him for a few seconds while he was in shock.
"See you tomorrow, Hot Staff," she said, walking away.
Kareem smiled, watching her beautiful figure walk away. Her scent had stuck to his clothes. He couldn't help but start sniffing his clothes.
"She smells so great," he said, smiling and talking to himself as he went home.
At Ethan's new house,
"Yo! This is your new house? Bro, this place is crazy!" Dex was shocked. He continued,
"Dawg, we gotta show the crew this. We can throw a shit ton of parties here, fam. We'll be legends!"
"Yeah. Here, grab a controller. Let's play some games." Dex grabbed the controller, noticing the lack of excitement in Ethan's voice. They played games for a while, and before Dex could leave and go home, he stopped himself at the door and came back.
"Yo, bro, you good? You went a little crazy on Marquis today," he asked.
Ethan walked to the balcony.
"I'm good, dawg. I'm the richest man in the world. I ain't got no worries."
"Yo, I know you, Ethan. What's wrong? Talk to me, bro."
Tears welled up in Ethan's eyes.
"That fuckin' wish, man. It killed my father. My real, actual dad is dead because I made that stupid wish," Ethan replied, tears already running down his cheeks.
Dex walked toward the balcony, grabbed Ethan's hand, and pulled him into his embrace.
"Yo, it's okay, man. I'm here for you. It'll all be alright, man. I'm so sorry about your dad," Dex said, embracing his best friend.
Ethan couldn't help but cry some more. "I fuckin' killed my dad, man. It's all my fault."
After a while of crying,
"You gotta get home, man. Let's stop this crying. We ain't a bunch of chicks," Ethan said.
"Nah, bro. Think I'm gonna sleep here tonight. I'll text my mom and tell her I'm sleeping over," Dex didn't want to leave his friend alone.
"Thanks, man. You still up for another game, or are you scared I'll kick your ass again?" Ethan joked.
"It's on," Dex said, rushing for his controller.
Chloe reached her house, opened the gate, and walked in. She reached the door and took a deep breath, then opened it. She found her mother passed out, white powder on the table, and empty beer bottles all over the floor. She tiptoed her way around the mess and rushed into her room, locking the door. She took the money she got from Marquis and put it in a box hidden under her wardrobe.
She took out her headphones and started playing some music on her phone until she fell asleep, looking at the ceiling.
Marquis was walking in the park. He turned on his phone and saw at least ten missed calls from Tommy. His phone started ringing, and he answered it.
"Are you ignoring my calls, kid? Don't fuckin' play games with me, Marquis. I want my money. Don't forget what I have on you, kid," Tommy demanded.
He sighed, tired of everything going on in his life.
"Just give me a little more time. I have half of it. Give me a bit more time to get it together, please, man. I promise I'll get you your money," Marquis pleaded.
"One more day, kid, and that's it," then Tommy hung up.
Marquis sat down, his back against a tree, thinking. After seeing how Ethan treated him, he knew there was no way he was getting that money from him. He thought about his parents, thinking maybe it was time he faced them. He closed his eyes and fell asleep in the park.
When he woke up, it was already nighttime. He got up, ready to face the music with his parents.
He walked, the cold of the night hitting his body, but he didn't shiver. His mind was focused on what he was going to tell his parents. He finally arrived home and could see his parents through the window, already having dinner. He opened the gate, walked in, his heart racing.
His parents were eating their food when they heard the door open. Their hands quickly stopped moving, meeting with Marquis's gaze.
"Marquis," his mom said.
His dad got up from his chair, rushing toward him.
"Dad, I—"
Slap!
A slap echoed in the room.
"Who said you could go through my things?" Before Marquis could answer,
"Where is it? I know you found it. Where is it, Marquis?"
Marquis could feel the anger emanating from his father. If he told him that the Orb disappeared, it wouldn't end well for him.
"I hid it somewhere," Marquis replied.
"Where? You know what? Go and get it now," his father demanded.
"I'll get it tomorrow, I promise. I'll bring it to you tomorrow, Dad. I promise."
His father closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"OK. Don't forget what you said, Marquis. I'll be waiting for it."
Marquis started walking up to his room.
"Stop!" his father stopped him. "Get yourself something to eat."
Marquis grabbed a few pieces of bread and a juice from the fridge, then went to his room. For today, he could sleep in his bed, but if he didn't bring the Orb tomorrow like he promised, this wouldn't end well for him.
He placed his food on his table, he couldn't eat it. He sighed, then fell backward onto his bed. He looked at the ceiling, tears streaming down the sides of his eyes as he fell asleep.
"Hey, handsome. You want to see what's under my skirt?" Nia said.
"Yes, please," a boy responded.
"No, no, no, no. I'm your queen, the most beautiful girl in our school."
"I'm sorry, my queen. Please let me see your beautiful body, my queen. Please," the boy responded.
Nia walked toward him, then whispered in his ear, "You failed to address me properly, so maybe next time," then she vanished.
The boy snapped his eyes open, waking up. He threw his hand on his forehead.
"Fuck, I was so close," he sighed.
At school, the Untouchables made their entrance. Every day, they would wear something different and flex their superiority.
"Bro, I dreamt about Nia today. She was amazing, bro. I almost saw her panties," a boy said.
"Me too, dude, but I messed up, bro. I failed to address her properly," another one chimed in.
"She's definitely the number one beauty of our school."
"She's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen, man."
Most of the boys were staring at Nia, their eyes full of admiration and love. Nia side-eyed Chloe, then smirked a bit. Chloe was shocked but ignored the talks. She just thought it was their normal thing, debating about who was more beautiful between her and Nia.