Jake Addams March 29th, 20XX

“As Abby said, the ‘Future Star’ project was a talent training program run by the government, but the biggest talent companies around sponsored it. It was a program that gave orphans or the less privileged a chance to go out into the world and make something of themes- “

“You mean it was a bunch of fat cats trying to mass-produce talents for their companies. It was a glorified slave ring that was barely legal.”

A soft but harsh voice floated over all of our heads and incorporated its hateful words into Alice’s explanation and overpowered her words. We all looked at the owner of the comment with amazed expressions, but Alice ignored it and continued her explanation, unused to not having total control of the crowd when she spoke.

“I haven’t heard too much about the program’s restart, but my uncle, who works at Volui, says that the company is likely to fund it. “

“The hell it is.”

I’d heard every word he said, but it wasn’t just because I’d sat close to him. The uncomfortable expressions on the other’s faces showed they had heard him as well, despite the quiet tone he spoke in. He didn’t have an awful voice, but the anger in his tone made it difficult to listen to.

His eyes never left Alice’s face as he contradicted everything she said, but he never quite interrupted her and made his stance clear.

I could tell that something was wrong, and that something was likely the conversation topic. But well, anything that could make a space head like Finn react so aggressively was probably a subject we should avoid. I couldn’t lie and say that I wasn’t curious, but I didn’t think satisfying my curiosity was worth bringing out such an intense expression on his usually blank face.

Alice finally lost her cool and glared at him with a conflicted but angry expression. I didn’t like that. It was one thing to be angry at someone for making you look stupid, but why did she look so conflicted?

“Do you have anything you would like to say to the rest of us? You obviously don’t agree with what I’m saying.”

He looked back at her with an innocent expression and pulled off a beatific smile that made it hard not to smile back. But as innocent as his expression was, he made the mocking underlay clear.

“What do you mean? I’m pretty sure everyone’s heard what I said.”

I cut in before things got any worse between the two… not that I wanted things to get any better between them ... I probably wouldn’t try too hard.

“Hey, maybe we should change topics? Like, what was that thing you were talking about? That Squire girl that runs the gossip channel? You said you knew her, Vanessa?”

All I received for my efforts were a few dirty looks and harsh whispers in my direction to be quiet. Alice took an aggressive step towards Finn, who had gotten up and packed up his things already.

“You obviously have a problem with this topic, so why don’t you say it instead of whispering away like a coward? I know you may not be aware since you’ve been a loner your entire high school career, but that’s what friends do. They say things and if they don’t like what others said, then they address it. You can start by explaining what you meant by calling the program a ‘slave-ring’. I know that all the participants had a choice to go into the program but if you heard something else, then say so.“

His face changed expressions as she talked, from surprised to amused and finally settled on irritated. It was a shocking sight considering he usually flipped between looking either politely bored or dismissively focused.

He countered her in a light tone that still sounded condescending; as if he were tutoring a child who still believed that they made the moon out of cheese and that a magic fairy routinely broke into children’s houses and replaced their teeth for money.

“By a choice, do you mean being kicked out of whatever orphanage they were currently in or going into a training program where they could be prostituted and eventually sold into servitude?”

“You keep throwing around these big, nasty words, but it was a wonderful program! My uncle knew its overseer, and he told me my information so you don’t have to make me sound like an idiot who only gets her information off of whatever gossip rag is out there.”

Vanessa took offence at this and narrowed her eyes at Alice, but quickly fixed her expression when Alice looked back at her. Finn nodded slowly and carefully as he calmed himself down.

“You’re right... I have no right no make you out like an idiot who only gets her information off of whatever gossip rag is out there. But I’ll assume I ‘have the right’ to advise you not to speak about something you know nothing about.”

She grew flustered by his words and made to retort, but missed her opportunity. He kept talking in that same tone that made everyone who heard it angry. I didn’t blame him for being angry; after all, he’d tried to skate by the topic, but Alice had kept digging. But he also didn’t have to be so hostile, and he didn’t have to make it into such a large scene.

I would be the last one to say I knew Finn well enough to predict his actions, but what was going on now seemed out of character.

“Ignorance is a lack of knowledge and isn’t a crime, but the refusal to admit one’s lack of knowledge is foolishness. Instead of basing your opinion on the heavily censored information you received from your uncle, wouldn’t you be better off asking some participants? it’s one thing to borrow someone else’s name and wield it like your own but its another to-”

A heavy slap that forced his glasses off his face and onto the floor stopped him halfway through his reproach. We all stared at Alice, the unexpectant assailant who looked more hurt than the person who had received the slap. Her slender body trembled with anger and….. hurt?

I narrowed my eyes at the sight, and the scene of a girl being forced into a breakup flashed across my mind. One could imagine how unpleasant of a scene it was to think of while their girlfriend was with another guy.

“You repulsive jerk! Just who do you think you are?”

Annalise, one of her closest friends, stopped her as she raised her hand for another hit.

“Alice! Calm down!”

I slightly put my head down as I realized that the whole cafeteria had gone quiet and was looking in our direction, but kept my eyes on the scene. Finn put up a hand to his bruising cheek and looked at her with a shocked expression that only showed how large his eyes actually were, even without the glasses.

“It appears I have something to apologize for, but I’m afraid I don’t know what for. Would you care to talk it out?.... As friends do.”

The way he sneered her previous words back at her drove her over the edge. She shook off Annalise, who let her go a bit too easily, and approached him until they were close enough to kiss. I couldn’t help but frown as I watched her face flush with something other than anger. Her tone resumed in a much higher pitch that did nothing to hide her excited eyes.

“What have you done wrong!? You, a filthy little charity case of a student, accused my relative of supporting a slave-ring and you’re asking me what’s wrong? YOU, a nobody we took pity on and hung out with, dared do such a thing?!”

He kept his hand on his cheek and hunched into himself, looking like Alice’s words had hurt him deeply. It would have been enough to inspire pity from others if not from the self-satisfied look on his face and the spiteful smile he balanced it with.

“Would it be okay if I wasn’t a ‘charity case’? ”

We all went quiet. Everyone had known he was here on a merit-based scholarship, but since he had the highest grades in the class, nobody had brought it up. Meanwhile, bitter bile rose in my throat as I took offence; after all, I was also here on a scholarship.

Alice laughed in a tone as obnoxious as his expression,

“You know that isn’t the problem here.”

“Well, how could a charity case such as myself even dare to claim to understand the thinkings of you rich…”

He said a word in an unfamiliar language that was obviously not a compliment and slightly shifted position as he realized he was about to get slapped again. She raised an arm halfway up but dropped it pathetically. Angry tears rolled down her face as she realized she couldn’t out-speak him, and an embarrassed expression blossomed as she realized how bad things looked.

I waited for her to back off, or even run out of the cafeteria with her gaggle of support minions behind her. There were a lot of options available to her, but she took the worst of them. I let out a silent groan as I saw her expression stiffen and her heels dig into the ground.

“Listen well, Hall... My uncle, the one you called a slave driver is a high-ranking executive at Volui and I doubt he’ll look kindly on you after hearing about this”

Shock rippled around the room as we all registered the seriousness of the threat. Volui was one of the top goals for every student here.

Although it wasn’t the biggest company, it was the one with a great reputation for talent and quality. For us, who were from a decently prestigious talent-based academy, it was only natural for it to be the goal.

Even Alice’s most devoted followers didn’t back her up, as the threat was serious enough to send all of us into silence. Well, all except the person she’d directed the threat at. Finn tilted his head and squinted his eyes as if trying to make sense of her statement.

“So you are going to get me out of Volui by borrowing the power of your uncle, who is an executive?”

Although he phrased it as a question, the incredulous tone he used made it sound like a challenge. She finally stepped back and out from her proximity to him and gave him a confident look.

“Yes.”

“And your uncle’s name is….?”

She answered with a significantly less confident tone as he asked the seemingly irrelevant questions and completely ignored what she considered her best threat.

“What would you do even if you knew?”

He pursed his lips and nodded slowly in response before he walked away. The bitter expression on Alice’s face intensified as he’d walked away without so much as a response.

The rest of the group moved to comfort Alice, so they missed the sight of his shoulders trembling with mirth as he left the room.

Alice held up a hand for them to stop pampering her and to give her their attention.

“From now on, no one is to speak to him or acknowledge his presence. Finn Hall is only a ghost to us. Understood?”

The group and the rest of the cafeteria nodded in agreement, I, on the other hand, could only chuckle in a sickened amusement. They all looked at me like I was a madman until Matt finally asked,

“Care to share the joke?”

I shook my head and looked around to see that literally no one else seemed to get the ridiculousness of such a statement.

“It nothing. It just occurred to me that I’ve never even seen him ask for our acknowledgement. I mean, as Alice so kindly pointed out, he’s spent the last three years of high school alone. He never talks to us, he dodges all of our invitations and never even smiles except to be polite, and yet for some reason, we keep coming back. Isn’t that just ridiculous?!”

The ‘reason’ looked away from me with a guilty expression and put me in an even worse mood than before.

The more I thought about it, the angrier I got, and the angrier I got, the less I wanted to be there. I got my stuff together and got up with the apparent intention of walking away. What surprised me was that half of the table got up alongside me, but it was probably to escape the awkwardness that would be left behind once I left.

Small tears beaded in Alice’s eyes as I walked away, but for once I couldn’t be bothered to turn around and apologize. I’d probably end up giving in later on, but for now, I should at least hold my ground.

From a distance I heard the rest of the table comforting Alice, calling both me and Finn a jerk, and overall of the mulling voices I heard Vanessa’s unmistakable voice interject.

“It’s not like he can do anything else to us, so let’s just keep doing what we always do. There was no reason to argue with Jake over this. It’s all his fault.”