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Jimmy's blunt answer left the vice principal completely speechless.
That one sentence shut the conversation down so cleanly that there was nothing left to say.
Fortunately, the office door opened at that moment, and the teacher responsible for Jimmy stepped inside.
"Vice Principal, is this the new transfer student?"
"Yes, he transferred from Los Angeles."
"Oh, hello," she said with a smile. "I am your teacher, Madeline Watson."
"Hello, Ms. Watson," Jimmy replied. "My name is Jimmy Halstead."
---
"Alright everyone, quiet down, please."
The classroom was loud and chaotic, more like a marketplace than a place of learning, students sat slouched in their seats, chatting about everything except schoolwork.
"Alright," the teacher said, "we have a new transfer student joining us today, come up and introduce yourself."
Jimmy walked to the front of the room, his backpack slung casually over one shoulder.
"Jimmy Halstead."
The teacher paused.
The class paused.
Everyone waited for more.
Jimmy turned his head and looked at the teacher.
"Where do I sit?"
The teacher blinked.
"That is it."
"That is it."
"Hahaha."
"Well," the teacher said, laughing, "that might be the shortest self-introduction I have ever heard. You can take a seat in the back row, at the desk on the right."
Jimmy stepped off the podium and walked to the back, sitting down without a fuss.
There was no bullying and no attempts to provoke him.
With his build, only an idiot would try.
His muscles were clearly visible even through his clothes.
A few girls did keep glancing back in his direction.
After class, Jimmy politely declined attempts at small talk and sat quietly at his desk, lost in thought.
The countdown timer on his system panel continued ticking down.
What excuse would he even use to return to Los Angeles and reenter the main storyline?
Jimmy had no interest in playing around with school crushes.
He had bigger things to worry about.
Like saving the world.
---
At lunch, Peter came looking for Jimmy and brought along his friend.
A chubby kid with a blank expression.
Ned Leeds.
"Hi, Jimmy."
"Hi, Ned."
The three of them headed to the cafeteria.
Peter talked nonstop along the way, Ned stared ahead absentmindedly, and Jimmy stayed silent; the contrast was oddly impressive.
Jimmy glanced at Peter's tray, then at the menu board, and handed over his meal card.
"Five A combo meals."
The cafeteria cook looked up.
"Five."
"Five."
"You ordering for yourself," the cook asked, glancing behind him.
"For myself."
"We do not allow food waste," the cook warned.
"If it is not enough, I will come back for more."
"Unbelievable," the cook muttered, handing over the trays while whispering to a staff monitor nearby, "keep an eye on him."
Five A combo meals.
One of those portions alone was enough to feed four girls.
Ordering five at once would have earned anyone else a lecture.
Jimmy's size was the only reason the cook let it slide.
The small table was completely covered with trays as Jimmy sat down and started eating.
A crowd slowly gathered nearby, staring in disbelief.
"Oh my god, he finished another one."
"Another one gone."
"That is the last one."
"That is the last one."
Jimmy wiped his mouth and glanced at the stunned cafeteria staff member beside him.
"Can I get two more servings, I am still not full."
"Whoa."
There were whistles, applause, and several thumbs raised in approval.
"I guess that is allowed."
"Two more."
Cheers immediately erupted around them.
---
Jimmy became famous across the entire school on his very first day.
Seven A combo meals, eaten alone, and his stomach did not even look slightly bloated.
While walking behind Peter to help him digest the food, Jimmy suddenly saw a football flying straight toward Peter and Ned.
Thud.
Jimmy threw a punch, and the football wrapped around his fist.
The impact instantly ruptured it.
Jimmy tore the ball in half, tossed it to the ground, and looked at the group running toward them.
"Hey, kid, you are that nobody Parker's bottomless pit friend, right?"
"Heh, has no one ever told you that running your mouth affects your height?"
"Affects my height."
"Yeah, because I will break your legs."
"Hahaha, then it looks like your height is about to change today."
"Come on, to the trees," Jimmy said, already walking ahead.
"Let us go."
Seven or eight boys followed him into the wooded area.
Peter and Ned were shaking.
"Ned, go to the administration office, I will help Jimmy, damn it."
Peter clenched his fists until they turned pale and rushed into the trees.
Ned had barely taken a step when two large students blocked his path.
"Hey, chubby, where do you think you are going? The road is closed."
When Peter finally rushed in, he swallowed hard.
Several sections of the metal fence along the outer wall had been bent inward.
The boys who ran in earlier were trapped in twisted bars.
Some were pinned by the legs, some by the neck, all of them struggling like flies caught in a web.
The leader was bound against a concrete pillar.
Jimmy's fist slammed down beside his ear, shattering the pillar instantly.
"Now tell me," Jimmy said calmly, "whose height was supposed to be affected."
Jimmy blew on his knuckles.
Not a scratch.
The boy froze completely, he did not even dare blink.
At best, he was just a school bully.
Compared to someone who had held heavy weapons in hostile territory and survived real combat, they were not even on the same level.
And Jimmy had already fought someone far worse than any of them.
---
On the way back, Peter flailed his arms excitedly while shadowboxing the air, his mouth moving nonstop.
"Ned, you did not see it. Thompson was literally hung on the wall with metal bars, like a jacket. That concrete pillar was thick. Jimmy smashed it with one punch."
"Jimmy, Jimmy, let me see your hand, seriously, not even a scratch."
"Did you train in some kind of secret combat technique? Did Dr. Yinsen teach you?"
"You know, people like him are always mysterious, strength has nothing to do with size or age or appearance."
Peter continued rambling, completely unaware.
Jimmy noticed Ned staring at him with shining eyes.
Apparently, believing everything was not limited to idiots.
"Peter, I am going back to class to study, see you tonight."
"See you tonight."
---
This friendly neighbor was honestly hard to handle.
Logan had Deadpool.
Jimmy had Spider-Man.
Did every Wolverine type end up with a nonstop chatterbox nearby?
Was this some kind of curse?
Jimmy seriously started to wonder.
In the end, two staff members called by the boys' companions helped free them.
When asked what happened, they either claimed they did not know or gave explanations so ridiculous that even the staff doubted their intelligence.
Eventually, the matter was quietly dropped.
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~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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