Sivax (Vigilante Deku)

And Boom Goes the Laptop

So, after nearly dying of stress and barely avoiding a full-blown hero raid, I figured it was time to call it a night. I mean, who wouldn't? I'd already accomplished the impossible: hacking into UA (kind of), nearly blowing my cover, and not getting arrested. I was basically a legend in my own mind.

As I started gathering up the books—because, yes, even in a villain hideout, I still clean up after myself like the responsible citizen I am—I couldn't help but glance at my laptop. It was sitting there, quietly humming, probably plotting its revenge for the abuse I'd just put it through.

Alright, buddy, you've earned a break. 

No more messing with firewalls or pretending we're in a spy movie. 

You're retired.

I turned away to put the books back on the shelves when—

BOOM.

My entire body jumped, and I swear my soul left my body for a solid five seconds. Spinning around, I saw it: my laptop. Or rather, what was left of it.

The thing had exploded. As in, full-on fireball mode and worst thing is..... I could SEEE the word BOOOM..... this was a first for me. There was smoke, sparks, and oh, hey, an actual flame starting to creep up the desk.

Oh my god, oh my god, OH MY GOD.

For a second, I just stood there, frozen, staring at the flaming remains of my best (and only) tech companion.

This isn't real. 

This is a bad dream. 

Laptops don't just EXPLODE, right? 

Right?!

Apparently, mine did. 

And it was on fire. 

In a library.

Cue the panic.

I grabbed the nearest thing I could find—one of the massive coding books—and started smacking at the fire like my life depended on it.Which, honestly, it kind of did.

 If this place goes up in flames, the villains will murder me before the smoke inhalation does.

The fire hissed and spat, like it was personally offended by my attempts to put it out.

Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Fire, would you like me to let you burn down the whole hideout?

By now, I was sweating buckets, both from the heat and the sheer terror of what was happening. The fire was finally starting to shrink when I noticed something even more terrifying.

The villains.

They were still downstairs. And they hadn't noticed a thing.

Let me paint you a picture: there's a literal mini-inferno happening up here, and what are they doing? Arguing about snacks. I could read the sentences about their conversation which are slipping through the floorboards—well, see them through the vibrations, if you want to get technical. Idiot #4 was yelling something about someone stealing his pretzels, while Idiot #7 was defending himself like he was in court.

How are these people alive? 

How am I alive?

 How is this building still standing?

The fire finally sputtered out, leaving behind a charred, smoking mess where my laptop used to be. The smell of burnt plastic and regret filled the air.

I stood there, clutching the soot-covered book, my heart pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat.

Okay,.... Breathe. 

The fire's out. 

The villains are too dumb to notice.

 You're fine.

 Everything is fine.

Except it wasn't fine. 

My laptop—my one lifeline, my trusty sidekick—was dead. 

Gone. 

Reduced to ashes.

And the villains? 

Still oblivious.

I slumped against the desk, staring at the wreckage.

Great. 

Just great. 

Now I have no laptop, no backup plan, and a group of idiots downstairs who can't even figure out who ate their snacks, let alone who started a fire.

Honestly, if anyone ever asks how I survive living here, the answer is simple: 

dumb luck and their even dumber brains.