Chapter 74: Frozen In Fear
A few days had passed at school, and eventually, it was Friday again, the last day before the weekend would roll around.
Abby found herself constantly walking down the hallways, each time hoping, just hoping , that maybe she’d see Max back in the room again.
But it never happened.
While her head was turned, distracted by her thoughts, she accidentally bumped into a student right in front of her. She nearly fell backward, her books slipping from her arms and scattering across the floor.
"Sorry about that," Abby said quickly. "I wasn’t paying attention to where I was walking."
The student she had run into knelt down without hesitation, picking up her books and handing them back to her.
"Thank you," Abby said, slightly flustered.
"No worries. Just be careful."
"Yeah... I will. I’m sorry for bumping into you again."
"Not that, " the student replied, his tone a little more serious. "You know the school’s dangerous. If you notice anyone following you... you should be careful."
In a school like this, it was rare to see someone act so nicely. With a polite smile, Abby gave him a quick nod and hurried off.
Behind her, the student, Jay watched her walk away.
"I have a weird feeling something’s going to happen soon," Jay muttered under his breath. "But maybe it’s for the best if nothing does."
It didn’t take long for Abby to meet up with Cindy in class. As she dropped into her seat, she let out a long, heavy sigh.
"What’s wrong?" Cindy asked. "Max not here again? You know you have his number, you could just message him and ask what’s going on."
"Our last conversation was just a little awkward, you know?" Abby said. "But... you’re right. I can’t just leave it the way it is. And on top of that..."
She hesitated, lowering her voice.
"I don’t know if it’s because of what happened that day on the high street, but... things have just felt weird. Strange. I feel like people are almost following me."
Her fingers fidgeted with the edge of her sleeve.
"Even outside my house... it’s like there are people just hovering around."
"It’s just your imagination!" Cindy said quickly. "You’re over-worrying as usual. Anyway, I’ll tell you what you can do, why don’t you surprise him this weekend? You know where he lives, right? Go and get him. Show him how much you really care."
She gave Abby a grin.
"I think any guy’s heart would melt if someone as pretty as you showed up like that, being all honest and sweet."
Abby’s cheeks flushed pink at the compliment, but the idea of seeing him this weekend... didn’t sound too bad after all.
She didn’t have anything better to do. And despite the lingering fear from earlier, something about the thought made her feel just a bit safer.
Later, when school finally ended, Abby was ready to leave. She met up with Cindy as the two of them headed toward the bus stop together. As they walked out through the front gate, Abby’s eyes were more alert than usual.
That’s when she saw him, across the street.
A sharp-looking man, standing still in a neatly pressed suit, just watching the school from a distance.
"What are you looking at?" Cindy asked, turning her head, then froze when she saw the same man.
"I thought you were already head over heels for Max," Cindy teased. "That man’s handsome, sure, but you don’t need two of them. And that is a nice-looking suit... maybe I should be the one going after him."
"Don’t you remember what I told you?" Abby replied, eyes still fixed across the street. "About the strange people hanging around lately... I think he might be one of them."
Standing silently on the other side of the road was Aron.
His eyes weren’t on Cindy. He wasn’t distracted.
Instead, he was watching all the students pouring out of the school gates, scanning them carefully, searching for an opening.
Lately, my head’s been filled with all sorts of thoughts, Aron mused. There are so many questions I want to ask the young master... but after everything I’ve failed at, I feel like I don’t have the right.
Still, today he’s trusted me with an important task. Maybe once things settle down in his life, I can finally do something... something that helps me make peace with it all.
The task Max had given him was straightforward, but dangerous.
Find out where Dipter and his group hung out.
According to Joe, the group held regular meetings on weekends. After each one, the students would split up into large teams, delivering packages to different locations and people.
Those destinations varied constantly.
Sometimes it was nightclubs. Other times, office buildings. And on more than one occasion... even schools.
The more Max heard about Dipter’s operations, the more it all sounded like just another street gang.
The key problem, though, was that the meeting place for all the students changed every time. Joe, having distanced himself, was no longer part of these gatherings, which made information scarce.
There had been a suggestion from the group, why not just go after Dipter directly? Take him out first, then pick off the rest of the group one by one.
But Max had made his reasoning clear.
He didn’t just want Dipter.
He wanted everyone who had been involved in attacking him that day. And because of the situation surrounding the school, he needed to handle it all at once.
Finally, after hours of quiet surveillance, Aron spotted his target.
He was looking for someone specific, bandages wrapped tightly around both hands.
It was Ko.
Aron tracked the group as they made their way into an arcade. They spent what little coins they had left, loitering and laughing like everything was normal. Eventually, the group slipped into the public restroom together.
Once inside, they pulled out cigarettes, clearly intending to take over the space and chill there for a while.
That’s when Aron walked in, silent, precise, and deadly.
"What the heck?!" Ko shouted, turning with wide eyes as he saw the man in a clean black suit step inside.
"What’s a businessman doing in the arcade toilet?" he jeered. "You come here to look at our wieners or something?!"
Aron wasted no time.
His fist crashed across one of the students’ faces, sending him stumbling. With his other hand, he grabbed the back of the boy’s head by the hair and yanked it down, driving his knee hard into his throat and dropping him to the floor.
"Those who’ve bullied the young master for so long... I’ve been meaning to do this for a very long time," Aron said calmly. "Also, I was told you might be especially frightened by this. "
He pulled out what looked like a regular pencil.
But the moment Ko saw it, his face went pale, and in an instant, his leg went weak. A dark stain spread down his pants, and a foul stench filled the air.
Aron blinked.
He had no idea why a simple pencil would cause such a reaction. But it had been advice from Joe, who, knowing what Aron had been tasked with, had assured him it would be effective.
"Please... what do you want?" Ko begged, trembling, all arrogance gone.
Aron recalled a conversation he’d had with Max just days ago.
"If I find out the location... aren’t you worried they’ll just run back and tell Dipter?" Aron had asked.
"That’s fine," Max had answered without hesitation. "I want them to bring everyone they have. So we can deal with them all at once."
It hadn’t taken Aron long to get the information he needed.
And with that, he walked out of the arcade bathroom, leaving behind a very broken version of Ko.
He passed the location directly to Max. The night came to a close. And finally... the weekend arrived.
It was the day they would act.