Noel's group notices a girl walking by, almost like she appeared out of nowhere.
"Yo, anyone grabbing popcorn?" Damien asks, voice loud enough to turn a few heads.
Noel doesn't reply—he just stares. After a moment, he gets up and tells his group,
"I'll be back in a bit."
Sasha smirks. "Well, that was fast."
Nyra leans forward, teasing. "Ah, love at first sight, huh?"
Ryan just exhales softly. "Or he's about to embarrass himself. Again."
They all chuckle as Noel walks a short distance toward the girl.
"So… you're Noel, huh?" she says.
"Oh, am I that famous?" Noel replies with a faint smirk.
She laughs. "Haha, who knows. Though, with hair like that, you kinda look like you walked out of a movie or something."
Noel blushes slightly. "Ahh… thanks."
Noel smirks. "You're good at giving compliments, but bad at introductions, huh?"
"Oh, sorry! I'm Sophie, same batch," she replies.
"Pretty cool name," Noel says with a grin.
Sophie smiles. "Heh, don't hear that often. Thanks."
"So, want some drinks?" Noel asks.
"Maybe later," Sophie laughs.
They chat for a bit about college and studies. Sophie glances toward Noel's friends.
"I think you should head back to your group," she says lightly.
Noel chuckles. "Yeah… they might be staring at me like an eighty-year-old sugar daddy."
Sophie laughs again. Noel finds it kind of cute.
"I'll catch up with you later," Noel tells her. "It was really nice meeting you… Sophie."
"Me too… see ya," she replies.
Noel walks back to his group. Damien grins at him.
"Where the hell did this popcorn come from?" Noel asks.
(There wasn't any popcorn at the party.)
Nyra raises an eyebrow. "Forget the popcorn — I'm more interested in whatever that was."
"Bruh, she just wanted to talk to me like a friend, that's all," Noel protests.
Sasha bursts out laughing. "Aha! I won the bet! Pay up, Damien!"
"Bitchhh… you all made a bet about this? Wtf?" Noel asks.
Everyone laughs, and he blends back into the group. The day continues, just like any other.
The next day, Noel walks with Ryan to meet the rest of the group. The day is peaceful. From a distance, they spot the benches near the corner of the ground.
"Hey… isn't that the same girl we saw yesterday?" Noel asks.
"Yeah, I guess so. Maybe she's having a rough time," Ryan replies.
Noel's attention stays fixed on her.
She's crying. A few drops fall onto a bully's shoes.
"Clean it," the bully orders.
She refuses. The bully grabs her hair, forcing her down.
Noel's mind flashes:
Just kill him.
His friends' voices fade as an inner voice whisper:
You weren't that much of a coward.
Noel's eyes widen. He shakes himself out of the thought and walks toward them.
Sasha's voice calls out, but it feels distant.
Noel steps in front of the bully.
"Knock it off, dude."
"Who the fuck are you? Her boyfriend?" the bully sneers.
The girl glances at Noel, hope in her eyes.
Noel pulls the bully's hand away.
The bully shoves him back.
Noel steadies himself. "It's wrong to do this. I'm not here to fight."
"Then what? Impress her?" the bully snaps.
He throws a punch on Noel.
Noel's inner voice returns: You weren't this weak, huh?
Noel punches back—hard. Blood streams from the bully's nose.
The bully's friends step forward, but Damien, Sasha, and Ryan arrive just in time.
"Don't let this happen again!" Damien shouts, his usual grin gone.
The bullies freeze, glaring, then retreat. Noel leads the girl to safety.
She whispers, "That bully… he uses his brother's name to threaten people. He even hurt my younger brother."
Younger brother…
Noel's mind echoes the words.
His vision blurs. A headache hits. His nose bleeds.
"Yeah, must be from the fight," Nyra says, handing him a tissue with a small, worried smile.
Noel looks at her. "Next time, it won't happen. We're here."
After calming down, she leaves. The day ends.
Later, after classes ended, Noel stepped out of the college gates. The streets were quieter now, the bustle of students fading behind him. Hands in his pockets, he made his way home — only to run into the bullies again.
"Ah man… here we go again," Noel mutters.
"You messed up talking to us," the bully growls.
"Bro, do you think I'm gay? Why would I talk to you?" Noel replies.
"Shut up!" the bully yells, tackling him into a wall. Pain shoots through Noel's body.
The bullies attack. Noel covers his face.
Suddenly, his mind drifts away....
He finds himself in a grand, gloomy room. A figure sitting on a large sofa, staring at him.
Before Noel can speak, the figure says,
"Fight back… or you will die."
"I'm not capable of that…" Noel mutters.
The figure smirks. "So you need power?"
"I… don't know."
"You're weak, Noel. For today, I'll let you have everything you're capable of."
"But who are you—?"
"I'm..."
Noel snaps back to reality.
The bully's face is pale, terrified.
"Stop… okay, okay, I'm sorry!"
The bullies lie on the ground—beaten.
Noel looks down at his own bruises, bloodied and aching.
He says nothing. Just walks away.
"I just wanna go home right now…"
His house sits at the edge of a jungle.
Inside, he grabs a first-aid kit, cleaning and bandaging his wounds. He collapses on the sofa.
His grandfather enters with some fish.
"Oh, hey pops…" Noel mutters.
"Hey Noel, look. I caught some from the pond near the jungle," his grandpa says.
Noel stays quiet.
His grandfather notices the injuries, rushing forward.
"What happened to you?"
"Just… a little accident."
"Noel, look at me. Did you fight someone?"
Noel tells him everything.
His grandpa sighs.
"I won't argue. What you did was right. But don't get too involved in this."
"…Pops, what really happened to me three years ago? You never told me."
His grandpa laughs.
"I forgot that day… you're not the only one who lost memory. Mine went with age."
Noel laughs quietly.
…
…
Meanwhile, the bully explains everything to his older brother, twisting the story to hide his abuse.
The brother listens, calm, then asks for a picture.
The bully had already taken one of Noel on campus. He shows it.
Later, in a dark hideout, the brother requests leave from his boss.
The boss radiates authority, his presence enough to silence anyone.
"Clear? You're cleaning up a mess?" he asks with a laugh.
"There's a guy messing around. My brother says he's trouble… probably an egoist."
"Egoist, huh?" The boss leans forward. "Show me."
The brother hands over the picture.
The boss removes his glasses—eyes widen in shock as he stares at Noel's face.