I slung my bag over my shoulder and headed for the door. I was about to leave through the door when someone bumped into me.
"Whoa, sorry!"
It was Peter.
He blinked at me, confused. "Wait, are you... are you new? I don't think I've seen you before."
"Yeah. First day. Adam Maxwell."
"Oh! Right, yeah, that makes sense. I was late so I probably missed the whole introduction thing." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry about that. I'm Peter. Peter Parker."
"I caught that when Ms. Lind called you out."
He winced. "Yeah, that was... not my best moment. What class do you have next?"
I pulled out my schedule. "Chemistry. Room 210."
His face lit up. "Oh, hey, me too! We can walk together if you want. I mean, if you don't already know where it is. Which you probably don't since it's your first day. Not that I'm assuming you're bad with directions or anything, I just—"
"Sure," I cut in before he could keep rambling. "That'd be great."
"Awesome." He grinned, looking relieved.
We stepped out into the hallway, and immediately a voice called out.
"Peter! There you are."
I turned to see the blonde girl from class. Gwen. She was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, looking annoyed.
"You said you'd wait for me after English," she said, walking over.
"I know, I know, but I dropped my pen and then I had to reorganize my bag because everything got mixed up and—"
"You're hopeless," she said, but there was a smile tugging at her lips.
Peter shrugged. "Yeah, probably."
"You're hopeless," she said, but there was a smile tugging at her lips. Then her eyes shifted to me. "Hey, Adam, right? The transfer student from Kansas?"
"Yeah, that's me."
Gwen stuck out her hand. "Gwen Stacy."
I shook it. "Adam Maxwell."
"Chemistry," Peter said. "Adam's in our class."
"Oh, perfect. We can all walk together then." She started down the hall, and Peter followed like it was the most natural thing in the world.
I trailed behind them, watching the way they moved around each other. Gwen would say something, Peter would respond with some overexplained answer, and she'd roll her eyes but keep smiling. They had that easy back and forth thing going on.
"So are you two, like... dating?" I asked.
Both of them went silent.
Peter's face turned red. Gwen suddenly found the floor very interesting.
I took that as a yes.
"Right. Got it."
Gwen was pretty, I had to admit. Blonde hair, green eyes. Not as pretty as Leila, though. Nobody was as pretty as Leila. But yeah, Gwen was definitely up there.
"It's... complicated," Gwen finally said, breaking the silence.
"It's not that complicated," Peter muttered.
"Yes, it is."
"No, it's not."
And just like that, they were bickering again.
"Definitely dating."
They turned red again.
I couldn't help but smile a little. Maybe Midtown High wouldn't be so bad after all.
=====
Goddamnit.
I jinxed it.
Staring at the giant humanoid lizard in front of me, I felt fear.
Chemistry class had just finished. Normal day, right? Wrong. So fucking wrong.
I'd gone to the bathroom, just minding my own business, standing in front of the mirror trying to fix my hair or whatever. You know, normal teenage stuff. And then I heard it. This weird scraping sound. Like claws on tile.
I froze.
The sound got louder. Closer.
Then the wall behind me exploded.
Chunks of concrete and tile went flying everywhere. Dust filled the air, making me cough and squint. And through all that debris, through the giant hole in the bathroom wall, came this... thing.
A lizard. But not just any lizard. A massive, eight foot tall, muscular, humanoid lizard. Its claws dug into the floor as it pulled itself through the hole, tail whipping behind it.
What the actual fuck. Really?!
My brain completely short circuited. This wasn't real. This couldn't be real. Giant lizard monsters didn't exist. They didn't just dig through school walls and show up in bathrooms while you're trying to pee.
But there it was. Right in front of me.
The lizard turned its head, those yellow eyes locking onto me. I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't do anything except stand there like an idiot while this thing decided whether or not I was worth killing.
It stared at me for what felt like forever but was probably only a few seconds. Then it scoffed. Actually scoffed, like I wasn't even worth its time.
It turned toward the door, heading out into the hallway.
Oh thank god. It's leaving. I'm safe. I'm actually safe. It doesn't care about me. I'm just some random kid and—
Its tail flicked.
Fast. Too fast for me to react.
The impact hit me like a freight train. My body went flying, crashing into the wall with enough force to crack the tiles. Pain exploded through my back, my head, everywhere.
Then darkness.
—
I opened my eyes and saw a white ceiling.
Everything hurt. My nose stung from the smell. Disinfectant. That sharp, sterile smell that makes your sinuses burn. It was familiar. Too familiar. The same smell from when my dad died in the hospital.
I immediately recognized where I was.
Hospital.
But why?
I mean, I just finished Chemistry class, went to the bathroom, and then...
The lizard.
Shit.
My eyes went wide. I tried to sit up but pain shot through my entire body, forcing me back down. Every muscle screamed in protest. My head throbbed like someone had taken a sledgehammer to it.
"Whoa, whoa, easy there." A nurse appeared beside me, gently pressing me back down. "Don't move too fast. You took quite a hit."
"What... what happened?" My voice came out rough, scratchy.
"You were brought in from Midtown High. Some kind of attack. A lot of students were injured." She checked something on a monitor beside my bed. "You're lucky, honestly. Concussion, bruised ribs, some lacerations, but nothing broken. Could've been much worse."
Could've been worse? I got thrown into a wall by a giant lizard's tail. How much worse could it get?
"My mom..." I started.
"She's been notified. She's on her way." The nurse adjusted my IV. "Just rest for now, okay? Doctor will be in soon to check on you."
She left, and I was alone with my thoughts.
A giant lizard. In the school. That actually happened.
I didn't imagine it. The pain was proof enough of that. But how? Why? What the hell was that thing doing in Midtown High?
And more importantly... was anyone else hurt? Peter and Gwen were in that hallway waiting for me. All those other students.
God, I hoped they were okay.
I stared at the white ceiling, trying to make sense of what just happened. My first day at a new school and I nearly died because of a giant lizard monster.
What kind of messed up first day was this?
Then—
DING!
A holographic blue screen popped up in front of me, nearly giving me a heart attack.
[Daily Login System Activated]
Welcome, lucky reincarnator! You have unlocked your Daily Login System! Log in every day for rewards.
First Login Reward:
You have Received Grand Chariot [Akame ga Kill].
Huh?