Bubble Boy

The next morning, the halls of Nightingale Academy buzzed with whispers. The latest vigilante video had spread like wildfire, and the whole school was talking about it.

And then, the royalty arrived.

Jackson, Carter, and Emily strolled through the entrance like they owned the place.

Jackson led the way, exuding effortless confidence. The kind of aura that made people want to be near him. The kind that made people gawk. He barely had to acknowledge them, his presence alone was enough.

Emily walked close beside him, as if she belonged there, because she did.

Carter was a different story. He thrived on the attention. Every few steps, he greeted someone with a casual nod, a fist bump, a secret handshake, whatever was needed to keep his reputation as one of the coolest guys in school.

"Yo, Carter!" Some sophomore waved.

Carter didn't break stride, simply pointing at them with two fingers. "Stay sharp, kid."

The sophomore almost fainted.

As they moved deeper into the hallway, the whispers grew louder.

"Did you see the video?"

"Those guys took down Ironclad!"

"They have to be students here, right?"

"I swear, it's Jackson and his crew. Look at them, who else has that kind of vibe?"

Jackson smirked but said nothing. Let them speculate. It only made things more interesting.

Meanwhile, Troy stood near his locker, laughing with Annie.

"Wait, wait," she said between giggles. "So you're really rolling with Jackson now? That's a plot twist."

Troy scoffed. "Please. You really think I'd be hanging out with him?"

Annie folded her arms. "I dunno, Troy. The timing's real suspicious."

Before he could argue, the trio interrupted.

Jackson leaned against the locker next to Troy's, grinning. "Morning, Bubble Boy."

Troy's eye twitched. "Stop calling me that."

Carter slung an arm around his shoulder. "Nah, Bubble Boy is iconic now. You should see the memes."

Emily chuckled. "He really should."

Troy sighed. "You guys suck."

Annie took a step back, feeling instantly out of place. She wasn't part of this group. She wasn't cool like them. The way they surrounded Troy, the way they just took him away, it was like she didn't exist.

And then, the intercom crackled to life.

"Troy Miller, Jackson Hayes, Carter Vale, Emily West, please report to Principal Gardner's office immediately."

Troy groaned. "Oh, come on."

Jackson clapped him on the back. "Relax, Bubble Boy. This'll be fun."

Principal Gardner sat behind his desk, hands folded, giving them the look.

"You four wouldn't happen to know anything about these vigilantes running around, would you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Troy blinked. "Vigilantes? Us? Sir, we're just regular, law-abiding students."

Jackson nodded. "Absolutely. I wouldn't dream of breaking the law."

Emily leaned forward. "Principal, do we look like we run around stopping crime?"

Gardner sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Don't play dumb. People are talking. I am talking. And I don't want to find out that my students are getting involved in something extremely dangerous."

Carter smirked. "So… you don't want us to be heroes?"

Gardner gave him a deadpan stare. "I don't want you to die. Or get arrested. Or cause an international incident."

Troy folded his arms. "Sir, even if we were vigilantes, which we're not, why would we tell you?"

Gardner sighed. "Good point. You're all dismissed. But if I do find out you're involved… I'm retiring early. I don't get paid enough for this."

After escaping the principal's office, Troy made his way toward the usual lunch spot. But before he could even think about sitting with Annie, Carter grabbed him by the arm.

"Where do you think you're going?" Carter grinned.

Troy frowned. "Uh… lunch?"

Carter pulled him toward their table, the cool table.

Jackson, Emily, and Kasey were already there. Kasey. The literal queen of Nightingale. Troy hesitated for half a second before sitting down.

And then he realized, Kasey was right next to him.

He could smell her perfume.

His face turned red.

Carter leaned in. "Dude. Chill."

Meanwhile, at the nerd table, Annie sat with the other outcasts, watching from afar.

She stabbed at her salad with her fork, feeling completely shut out.

And across the cafeteria, the whispers continued.

"Troy Miller, huh?"

"Yeah, he's definitely Bubble Boy."

"And if he's Bubble Boy… that means Jackson and his crew are in on it too."

The legend of Bubble Boy's crew was spreading.

Annie barely saw Troy for the rest of the day.

At lunch, he was at their table, the cool table, laughing with Jackson, Carter, and Emily. And Kasey. Always Kasey.

During class, she'd glance toward him, but he was too busy trading jokes with Carter or whispering with Emily.

Even after school, when they usually met up at the gate, Troy wasn't there. Annie sighed, adjusting her backpack. I guess I'm walking alone today.

She turned and took a step...

"Leaving without me?"

Annie spun around to see Troy standing there, rubbing the back of his head with a sheepish grin.

"Sorry, I got caught up," he said. "Didn't mean to ignore you today."

Annie wanted to be mad. She should be mad. But the moment he smiled at her, that frustration melted. Instead, she just rolled her eyes. "Took you long enough, Bubble Boy."

Troy groaned. "You too?"

Annie giggled. "I'm just saying, it suits you."

The tension from earlier faded as they walked home together, falling into the usual rhythm, talking, joking, nudging each other playfully.

Annie told him about her math teacher's terrible attempt at humor. Troy complained about how Carter had somehow managed to steal his fries off his own tray.

They laughed, pushing and shoving like they always did. For a moment, things felt normal again.

And then...

"Man, Kasey looked so good today."

Annie's stomach twisted.

Troy kept going, oblivious. "I swear, every time she flips her hair, it's like a movie scene. And her eyes? Perfect. Like, I don't even know how to describe them."

Annie stopped walking.

Troy didn't notice at first, still caught up in his dream-girl rant. "And don't get me started on her voice..."

"Shut up, Troy."

Troy blinked. "What?"

Annie clenched her fists. "You're so dumb."

Before he could respond, she slapped him.

Not hard enough to really hurt, but hard enough to shock him into silence.

Troy stood there, stunned, hand on his cheek. "What the hell was that for?"

Annie didn't answer. She turned and ran up the steps to her house, slamming the door behind her.

Inside, the smell of her mom's cooking filled the air.

"Annie, you're home! Dinner's almost..."

Annie ignored her and stormed past the kitchen.

"Bubble Blast!"

She barely spared a glance at Sam, who was zooming around the living room in a makeshift Bubble Boy costume, her arms outstretched like she was flying.

Annie didn't stop. She didn't say a word.

She ran straight to her room, threw herself onto her bed, and let the tears come.

Outside, Troy still stood in front of Annie's house, rubbing his cheek.

What just happened?

The sting of the slap wasn't the part that bothered him, it was the way Annie had looked at him before running inside.

Like he'd hurt her.

Before he could think too hard about it, his phone buzzed.

Jackson: Bubble Crew meet-up tonight. Training session. You in?

Troy stared at the message, then sighed and typed back:

Troy: Can't make it tonight.

He pocketed his phone and walked home, his mind still stuck on the look in Annie's eyes.

Then he remembered that he have important training with Jace and he skipped the past few training sessions and began running to Jace's house.