Fight

Eva had taken dozens of photos during the tournament—capturing Mike’s proud moments and Brutus’s perfect jump shots. The match had been thrilling, and to top it off, Brutus’s team had won.

After the game, Eva noticed Mike, Brutus, and Jin chatting near the court. She and Debby walked over. Eva handed Brutus a water bottle.

“Thanks,” he said, smiling warmly.

“You played really well, Mike!” Eva said. Her brother nodded, trying to act cool but clearly proud.

“I’ll send you the photos later,” Eva told Brutus, trying not to sound too excited.

“Sure,” he replied, returning her smile.

Eva was hoping he’d offer his number, but before she could ask, Brutus said, “Mike has my number.”

“Oh! Okay, then I’ll send them through Mike,” she said, hiding her disappointment.

As they turned to leave, Eva saw Debby flashing her placard to Jin. Jin smiled and gave her a playful thumbs-up.

That evening, Eva stormed into Mike’s room.

“Give me Brutus’s number! I’ll send the photos myself.”

Mike leaned back in his chair, arms crossed. “Send them to me. I’ll forward them.”

“Mike! I carried that heavy camera the whole day, just to capture him! At least reward my effort!”

Mike smirked. “Hand over the report card.”

Eva sighed dramatically and handed it over.

Moments later, she had Brutus’s number in her phone.

“Thanks, Mike!” she said, also handing him a new pair of headphones.

“You bought these for me?” he asked, surprised.

“Yep. That’s your reward,” she smiled.

Mike grinned. “Okay, okay. You’re not so bad.”

Back in her room, Eva transferred all the pictures to her laptop, picked the best ones, and sent them to Brutus. She stared at her phone, waiting.

Moments later, her phone buzzed.

“Hey! Nice pictures! You’re a good photographer indeed!”

Eva couldn’t stop smiling. Her heart raced as she replied, “Thanks!”

Seconds later, she noticed something that made her gasp—Brutus had changed his profile picture to one of her photos.

Unable to hold it in, she immediately called Debby.

“He changed his DP to the photo I took!” she squealed.

Debby was just as excited. “Wow! That’s amazing!”

“Do you think he’s interested in me?”

“I don’t know. But don’t jump too far ahead. Be careful—you might get hurt if you expect too much.”

Eva nodded, even though she didn’t want to admit it. “Okay, okay. But don’t tell Jin!”

“I won’t,” Debby promised.

That night, Eva couldn’t sleep. She’d spoken to Brutus again, taken pictures of him, got his number, and he even used her photo. It was, without question, a perfect day.

The next day, life went back to normal… or almost. After school, Eva and Debby spotted two bikes speeding by. On one were three rowdy boys, and on the other were Brutus, Jin, and another friend chasing them.

“That guy in the black T-shirt—he’s a proper hooligan,” Debby whispered.

Without thinking, both girls ran after the bikes, following them down the riverside road. Soon, the two groups stopped under a tunnel—and a full-on fight broke out.

Brutus and his friends were throwing punches.

Debby’s eyes widened. “What the heck is happening there?”

“We need to stop this!” Eva said, looking around.

Debby found a brick. Eva grabbed a thick wooden log. Then, both of them ran toward the fight, shouting at the top of their lungs.

The boys froze in shock as the two girls charged in, swinging wildly. Eva had her eyes shut tight, hitting whatever she could. She felt someone back away quickly.

Brutus and his friends stood stunned for a second—then joined the chaos again. Eva grabbed the gang leader by his hair, making him yelp. Jin and Debby handled another boy. Brutus and the third friend fought off the last one.

Suddenly, a sharp police whistle cut through the air.

“Police!” someone shouted.

Everyone scattered. Eva and Debby ducked behind a riverside wall, while Brutus’s group hid nearby. The rowdy gang ran—but two of them were caught.

“Not just us! Another group was also fighting!” one boy yelled to the officers.

“Shut up! You’re already on the wanted list,” the officer snapped. “Get to the station!”

The girls peeked out from behind the wall once the coast was clear.

“Thank God we escaped,” Eva whispered, her heart still racing.

Brutus and his friends stepped out of hiding, staring at the two girls in disbelief.

“You two could’ve gotten hurt! Or even arrested!” Debby shouted at Jin, slapping his chest.

The rest of them stared, confused and speechless.

“No, Deb! Listen to me!” Jin said quickly. Then, in his panic, he blurted, “We like each other!”

There was silence. Debby gasped and immediately covered Jin’s mouth.