Disgust filled Astrid as she entered the Gym with Natalia by her side. Both were dressed in their gym kit and wearing matching sullen expression. Gym was the subject that Sidekicks dreaded the most because it was designed purely with the intention of allowing the Heroes to show off and simultaneously humiliate the Sidekicks.

Seating themselves at the back so they could have a good view but also avoid being chosen, the two girls felt boredom quickly settle in after the first round of Save the Citizen. Lash and Speed were the undefeated champions so watching them during this games was predictable and boring, thus making the two girls play the Word Association game whilst Ramirez and Hamilton's citizen were pulverised.

"Next round. Speed, Lash, you want to be heroes or villains?" Coach Boomer asked.

"Villains," they both yelled back.

"Ooh, there's a surprise." Coach muttered sarcastically. "Who do you want next?"

"Alright, we'll take the little Stronghold and, uh, let's see..." Lash thought, picking on Will (who Speed and Lash had planned to use earlier.

"And we pick the older Stronghold!" Speed called out.

"Dude," whispered Lash, shaking his head when Speed deviated from the plan.

Both of them had agreed to pair Will and Warren together because not only would they win but also Warren would eventually take his anger out on Will once more. Instead Speed decided getting revenge on Astrid for embarrassing him the other day was the best way forward. Pairing her with her cousin and making her lose Save The Citizen was deemed the ultimate form of humiliation by Speed. After all, she had never once participated in a game of Save The Citizen.

Jamming her nails into the palm of her hand to keep herself calm, she fought against her survival instincts and forced herself to remain visible as Coach Boomer coaxed her from the stands. Looking at the terror on Astrid's face, Lash wished he could kick Speed for causing her that much anxiety. She hated having any attention on her.

"Strongholds, you're the Heroes. You have three minutes to immobilise your opponents and -."

"Save the citizen!" The students yelled.

"Ready!"

Taking a deep breath, Astrid nodded at her cousin and they both took a running stance. If they had to do this, they were going to do it properly.

"Set!"

Will took a deep breath, nodded at his cousin and reminded himself that he was doing this to show Zack and Ethan that just because they were Sidekicks didn't mean they were weak.

"Battle!"

Rushing towards the male Stronghold, the stretchy Hero refused to hurt Astrid. However, Speed ran towards her instantly without hesitation, instantly knocking her off her feet. Attempting to stand on two feet again, she was assaulted by Speed once more and flew into the barrier that protected the students from the arena.

Groaning, she peeled herself off the floor but was prepared. Manipulating her body mass, she remained visible for everyone in the Gym but Speed ran straight through her, smacking straight into the barrier. Laughter rang through the arena but Astrid's victory was short lived when he quickly recovered and ran for her again.

Disappearing from view, she hurried towards the citizen but just as she was about to reach for it, the ground shook beneath her. Colliding with the floor again, her body flickered back into view, alerting Speed to her presence. Noticing that she had been spotted, Astrid tried to make a run for it but suddenly Speed was running circles around her, increasing in speed with each lap. Collapsing to her knees, Astrid gasped for breath.

Finishing tying Lash to the post, Will noticed the struggle Astrid was in and rushed to save her before she passed out.

"You are so dead!" Lash screamed at Will's retreating form.

Sticking out his arm, Will grinned when Speed slammed into it before launching him at the tangled Hero. Both men smacked down into the ground, entangled and dazed. Before she was able to catch her breath, Astrid was thrown across the room where she collided with the citizen and the pair of them fell safely to the floor.

"Heroes win!" Coach Boomer announced. "Class dismissed!"

Before anyone could congratulate her on defeating Speed and Lash, the blonde Stronghold used her powers to escape the crowd and finally figure out how to begin breathing normally once more. Fear also contributed to the erratic breaths that escaped her mouth. The way Speed had used his powers was completely villainous.

Seated on the steps outside school, she enjoyed how peaceful the quad was without all the Heroes and Sidekicks milling about. Wind blew gently through the blonde ponytail and filled her lungs with enough oxygen that her chest stopped hurting after ten minutes.

For the second time in her educational life, Astrid Stronghold was skipping class and it wasn't to cry in the bathroom. Resting her head against her knees, she had finally stopped shaking when someone sat beside her.

"Astrid, I'm so sorry. I had no idea that he was going to pick you. We'd both agreed to pick Peace. I can't believe he vortexed you. He's never done that before and I haven't even asked if you're okay. Are you-."

"Lash, shut up." Astrid whispered.

"I'm sorry."

"Stop apologising before I feel the urge to hit you." Astrid warned. "It's really not your fault. Some people just take Save the Citizen too far."

Snorting at her comment, Lash began choking due to inhaling too much air and Astrid had to pat him on the back.

"Astrid?"

"Mhm?"

"Thank you."

"What for?"

"Allowing me to sit next to you on the bus. I know how much you valued your precious space," teased Lash.

"You're a prick."

"I'm aware. You've told me more than once."

However, she turned to look at him and smiled. Not only did her lips turn up at the corners but her eyes twinkled and he found himself smiling back. Every time he tried to pull himself away from her, he glanced into those baby blue eyes and knew there was no escape.

"I'm sorry."

"What? I'm afraid I didn't hear that." Lash joked causing Astrid to attempt to shove him off the step.

Both were still in their Gym clothes and Astrid was touched that, instead of showering and changing, he had missed his lesson so that he could search the school for her and check that she was okay. Not even her own cousin had done that.

"You're not as bad as you pretend to be."

Glancing down at his hands, he nervously cracked his knuckles before playing off the impact that her statement had on him.

"Trust me, I am."

If only she knew how bad I really was, Lash thought, glancing at the blonde as she lifted her face to the sky and basked in the warmth of the sun.

A spatter of freckles decorated her cheekbones and when she turned to face him, his cheeks flushed at being caught staring. However, she didn't glance away for once, neither did she comment on it. Instead, she looked into his brown eyes and smiled sadly.

"Maybe you are but I don't think you're as bad as I always thought you were. I mean, you're sure as hell no Saint but I there's more to you than just being a bully. You're just afraid to show it."

Without thinking, Lash leant over and smashed his lips against Astrid's, pulling her closer towards him. Whilst she found herself rendered immobile, her lips moved in response to his on their own. Voices floated towards their ears the pair pulled apart abruptly. Eyes wide, the two teenagers glanced at each other in shock. Lash's mouth opened and closed but before he could decipher what he wished to say, Astrid disappeared. Literally.