John Victor: The Origins

CHAPTER 5

"Umm... Seriously, Nick, I don't know what you're talking about." I replied, trying to downplay the situation.

"Sophia just texted me. Why the hell was Ryan chasing you?" he asked, his voice filled with anger.

"Look, Nick, it's nothing. Just forget about it." I said, hoping to diffuse the tension.

"Shut up. I'll deal with him tomorrow. He won't dare mess with you again." he said firmly.

"Nick, it doesn't matter-" Before I could finish my sentence, he interrupted me. "I told you to shut up, John. I'll handle it. He can't get away easily after messing with my best friend. Got it?"

"Alright, understood. But go easy on him." I said, emphasizing my concern. Then we decided to get some sleep.

But in the middle of the night, I woke up to find him still busy chatting with someone.

"Bro, just go back to sleep. You won't wake up in the morning if you stay up all night." I advised.

"Okay, okay." he mumbled, yawning as he finally settled down to sleep.

We ended up falling asleep, and thankfully, the old man didn't make an appearance again today. I thought to myself, 'Maybe he won't show up again.'

The next morning, I woke up as usual, but Nick was still fast asleep. I tried to wake him up, and after what seemed like an eternity, he finally opened his eyes.

"Time for school, idiot. Wake up." I said, nudging him.

"Yeah, yeah, John. You go ahead and get ready. I'll come downstairs soon." he mumbled groggily.

We both got ready and headed downstairs for breakfast. As we sat at the table, Martin, as usual, left for school with his friend Cody.

"Dad, could you drop both of us at school?" I asked.

"Sure, sure. I will. Get ready quickly, boys. We're leaving in ten minutes." my dad replied, still engrossed in a phone call.

Dad continued his conversation on the phone, while Nick and I occupied ourselves by playing Fortnite in the backseat of the car. Nick was a pro at the game, while I was still getting the hang of it. With his expert guidance, we dominated the match and secured the victory. Dad dropped us off at school and quickly drove off to work, without even saying goodbye. I wondered what was so important that he was engrossed in on the phone.

"Hey Nick, today you'll have to come over to my place again. We need to study another subject." I said.

"Seriously? Alright, man." he replied, his attention divided between texting someone and our conversation.

Suddenly, Nina approached Nick with a cheerful greeting, holding out a chocolate to him.

"Oh, hey Nina. You said you weren't coming to school today. I thought you had other plans?" he replied, taking the chocolate from her and taking a bite.

"Change of plans. I'll be going next week instead." Nina explained before walking away.

"Why did she suddenly give you chocolate?" I asked curiously.

"John, when you're the popular guy in school, it's just a normal thing for girls to walk up to you and give you chocolates." he replied with a laugh. 'What a silly guy.' I thought. It was strange though, seeing Nina being so friendly towards Nick.

During recess, Nick and I were heading towards the cafeteria when we noticed Ryan standing there with his friends. Upon seeing me, Ryan burst into laughter.

"I'll teach that bastard a lesson. Wait here, John." Nick said, all fired up.

"Nick, hold on! Don't..." I tried to stop him, but he didn't seem to listen.