The Villain's Obsession

BUGH

The girl grimaced as she wiped the sticky red fluid from the corner of her lips. Her sharp eyes surveyed dozens of people lying unfortunate on the asphalt, along with one who had just received a raw beating from her.

Slowly, her long legs walked toward the concrete barrier at the roadside. Her limping gait, a result of being struck by a large piece of wood, annoyed her.

"Damn it," she muttered, closing her eyes briefly before landing on the concrete. Her hazel eyes then shifted to the clear sky. The sun's rays struck her face, and sweat dripped from the girl's temples.

Her jaw tightened as the sweat hit a small cut on her cheek. She was certain that part must be turning purplish now. The bruise caused by a stout person earlier had left her face in this state.

The girl straightened her legs, closed her eyes to endure the pain in her left leg. She pulled up the jeans she was wearing, revealing a bruise on her shin.

"Damn," she whispered, roughly tugging at her hair. It seemed like her life might be in serious danger in a few moments.

With an anxious face, she looked up as if searching for something. Her attention then focused on one point.

Her hand clenched, accompanied by a frustrated sigh escaping her mouth.

"Damn, ambushed?" she mused, instantly changing her expression to a flat one. Then, she turned to look at each person lying helpless not far from her.

"If I knew this, I would have killed the damn guy earlier."

"Are you sure you want to kill them?" Another voice retorted, and the girl turned to the source of the sound.

The girl sighed, intending to unleash a string of curses, but her voice was choked in her throat. It ended with just closing her eyes, fists clenched.

"Deska, Deska, you're really a hassle," the voice of the known male said.

Deska then glared irritably at the man behind her.

"Late, Jo. You're late. It's all your fault, such a bother," Deska ended with a frustrated hiss.

The escalating tension prompted Deska to take off her denim jacket, leaving only a short-sleeved black shirt.

"You're strong, huh? Beating up twenty people like that," the man commented, diverting his attention to the pitiful humans lying on the asphalt.

"Annoying, they ruined my skateboard," Deska said, gazing sadly at the rectangular wheeled object now split in two. "I should have killed them."

"Not gonna happen," the man replied quickly, redirecting his attention to Deska. "You'll be a wanted person and risk not being considered your parents' child."

"Oh, really?" Deska retorted dismissively.

The girl stood up, hanging her jacket over her shoulder. She faced the man named Jonathan Samuel Rilichof in front of her.

"Jo, Jo, they're too reckless if they did that. And too cheesy," Deska said, ending with a cynical smile.

Jonathan raised an eyebrow, still observing the girl in front of him.

While Deska took a crouching position, lowering her jeans on the left side and fixing the slightly messy shoe lace.

"Ah, remember my principle?" Deska asked without diverting her attention from the knot in her hands.

Jonathan seemed unmoved. He then turned his gaze to the dozens of people lying unfortunate in front of him.

"Swipe a bit, hit them hard."

Deska rose with a curved smile on her lips. She patted Jonathan's shoulder proudly.

"Not wrong to be friends with you."

Jonathan brushed off Deska's hand emotionlessly.

"Lame," he muttered.

Deska crossed her arms. The girl stared intently at Jonathan.

"Jo, Jo, this is all your fault," she asserted.

Jonathan's face looked weary; he hated every time he encountered this situation.

"Because you were late, they wrecked my skateboard, Jo," Deska continued. Jonathan knew exactly what the girl meant.

"So before I kill someone, you better-"

"Yeah, I'll replace it later," he said lazily.

Deska instantly changed her facial expression. She smiled broadly, seeing Jonathan's very insincere expression. According to her, moments like these made her mood better.

"Okay, then take me home," Deska concluded, walking past Jonathan. He looked puzzled, glancing briefly at the watch on his wrist.

"Home? You want to get beaten?"

Deska's steps came to a halt. She turned to look at Jonathan with an unfriendly expression.

"Yeah, what's it to you? You want me to go back to that boring school? No way!"

Jonathan shook his head slightly, observing Deska's bad habit. Skipping classes. He couldn't count how many times this semester she had left school without permission. Deska's behavior was truly troublesome. Just two days ago, she had gotten into a brawl with a senior, and Jonathan felt the winds of impending doom about to strike Deska.

"You're asking for trouble, Des," mumbled Jonathan, who didn't want to talk much.

"What are you waiting for? Come on, I want to go home and relax," she snapped impatiently.

Jonathan nodded and followed the girl from behind. He glanced at Deska's left leg; she could walk normally now.

"How many lives do you actually have?" Jonathan wondered.

This girl was a bit different, her erratic behavior making everyone shake their heads at her antics.

"You're crazy. School isn't that far from here, and you're so slow to come," Deska complained when they reached the area where Jonathan's motorcycle was parked.

He grabbed a helmet and placed it on Deska's head. He remained silent despite the protests she directed at him.

"Hey, can't you hear me? Don't try to talk to a wall," she grumbled.

Jonathan sighed. His ears were getting hotter, listening to her rant.

"Do you think I'm like you? Leaving school without permission? No way!" Jonathan retorted. He then got on the motorcycle, ignoring Deska, who continued to curse him.

Women are always right.

"Are you getting on or not? I'll leave you here," Jonathan said, feeling that his life was becoming more complicated with her around.

With a reluctant attitude, she finally got on the motorcycle. Despite that, Deska really wanted to throw a raw punch at Jonathan's face, adding to her growing frustration.

"Lucky I'm not in the mood for punching people; otherwise, I would make sure you go home with a bruised face, Jo," mumbled Deska.

"Shut up."

Jonathan's motorcycle slowly started to move, leaving the area where the girl had skipped school.

"Thanks, Jo. I'll buy you a martabak sometime," Deska said as she got off Jonathan's motorcycle, handing him back the helmet.

"No need," he replied, grabbing the helmet from Deska's hand.

"Wow, so arrogant. This is the first time I've met someone who rejects free stuff," Deska scoffed.

"Whatever," Jonathan said with an indifferent face. Deska knew very well that he was fed up with her.

"I'm going back," she continued while starting the motorcycle's engine.

Deska crossed her arms, feeling a sudden suspicion about Jonathan.

"Where to?"

Jonathan turned, and for a moment, the two were in silence with the sound of the motorcycle engine accompanying them.

"To headquarters."

Deska sighed; her suspicion was correct.

"It's been a month, Des. You haven't been to the headquarters. The guys have been looking for you," Jonathan explained.

Deska just maintained a poker face, staring intently at Jonathan's face covered by the helmet.

"Two days ago, our headquarters was attacked by infiltrators. Emilo, Ernest, Kay, they had to be taken to the hospital because their heads were hit by blunt objects."

Quietly, Deska's fist clenched behind her. She channeled the sudden surge of emotion.

"Too many things have happened. We even got caught off guard by a new enemy. ELMINO, our big enemy."

To be continued...

"Deska Agatha Mackenzie, get over here!"

The girl called by her name turned to the source of the voice, finding her mom and dad in the living room.

Damn, she had barely stepped into the house, and her ears felt like they were about to be annihilated by her mom's shrill voice.

Deska began to walk casually toward her parents. She landed on a single sofa directly facing the two adults.

"Did you skip school again?" scolded her mom, making Deska close both of her ears.

No matter how many loudspeakers her mom had, her piercing voice successfully made anyone instinctively cover their ears.

Honestly, Deska's ears even rang for a moment.

"Calm down, Mom. Let's hear Deska's explanation," her dad interjected, rubbing his wife's back in an attempt to calm her.

Deska nodded in agreement with her dad's statement. Meanwhile, the woman beside him shot a sharp glare at Deska, as if ready to pounce on her.

"Your mom is stressed, Pah, seeing the behavior of your child," she said, massaging the bridge of her nose, throbbing.

"Mama is confused, Pah. As far as Mama knows, no one from our family has a delinquent nature like Deska," she continued, frustration evident in Deska's ears.

While her mom vented her frustrations, Deska smiled slightly, grabbing a box of sweet martabak from the table. Nonchalantly, her hand reached out to grab a piece of the sweet snack.

Deska chewed her food calmly while watching the woman in front of her become more frustrated.

Too bad; it seemed like rebelliousness was indeed very rare in this family.

"Deska, now Papa wants to ask you something," said the man in front of her, looking at Deska with a serious face, seeking an explanation.

"Did you leave school without permission again?" he asked.

Deska calmly shook her head.

"Do you see the time? It's not even time for school children to go home yet," her dad continued.

Deska nodded in agreement. "Deska skipped, Pah. If Deska asks for permission from the school, it's not called skipping," she replied casually.

The woman beside the man was already on the verge of scolding her daughter, but she was stopped by her husband.

"Since when?" her dad patiently asked, watching Deska, who took the opportunity to snatch the sweet martabak from the table.

"Since when?" the girl repeated, wearing a thoughtful expression. "Ah, two hours ago," she said, tossing her answer at the same time as the last bite of martabak entered her mouth.

"Where have you been for the last two hours? And, where is your school uniform?"

Deska sighed. The question from her mom made her remember her beloved item that couldn't be saved.

"Playing," she casually replied.

Her mom snapped at her. "What were you doing on the street?" she scolded fiercely.

Deska groaned. Her mom's question reminded Deska of her beloved item that couldn't be saved.

"Playing," she replied lightly.

Her mom exhaled in frustration. She massaged her throbbing forehead. "Pah, look at your child's behavior."

"Enough, Deska wants to rest," she concluded, preparing to get up from the sofa.

"Where are you going? Papa hasn't finished talking yet," her dad scolded, forcing Deska to abandon her intentions.

"Oh, not done yet?"

Honestly, the man actually wanted to protest against his daughter's behavior, which had gone way over the line. It was truly regrettable to know Deska's behavior was getting worse day by day.

"Who did you fight with this time? Look at your face; it's so messed up."

Deska sighed. She thought her dad wouldn't mention her face. But her estimation was way off.

"Got punched by someone, Pah."

"Oh my Deska, aren't you tired at all?" her mom sighed. "Mom is starting to doubt if she ever gave birth to you."

Deska chuckled softly. "No, Mah. Deska is your child. We're just not on the same frequency," she said candidly.

"Are you daring to answer back?" her mom exclaimed.

Deska just smiled. Then she turned to look at her dad, who was equally frustrated with his wife.

"Alright, Pah? Deska wants to go upstairs," she said, ready to get up from the sofa.

"You rude child, we haven't finished talking," grumbled her mom.

Deska had reached the limit of her patience. She stood up, crossing her arms. "What does Mama want to say, huh? Please speed it up because Deska is tired and wants to sleep."

Her mom then grabbed an object from the table, showing it clearly in front of Deska's face.

"Do you know what this is?"

Deska frowned. "That's paper."

"This is a letter from your school, Deska. Starting now, you are expelled from school," her mom explained with full emotion.

Deska was amazed. "Really, Mah?" Her mom stared at Deska in disbelief. "You, instead of being sad or something, are you happy?"

"School is too boring, Mah. Leaving that place is the right decision," she answered as if there were no burdens.

Her mom shook her head, unable to comprehend. She didn't know what language to use to make her daughter change.

Deska bid farewell to her parents and headed to her room. However, in the middle of the stairs, she clenched her fists.

"Damn."

________________________________________

The man couldn't stop sighing in frustration, feeling his ears burning from the cacophony around him.

He couldn't focus on his reading; the people around him were the source of disturbance to his concentration.

He wanted to complain, but it felt impossible. It ended with just clenching his fists, trying to channel his increasingly mounting frustration.

One of his hands reached to adjust his glasses, while the other dug out an earphone from his jacket pocket.

The only way was to plug his ears with the object in his hand, simultaneously drowning out the noise with the song playing on his phone.

This way, he could concentrate again on the thick book in his grasp.

Unfortunately, it didn't last long because the chair he was sitting on was kicked from behind, causing him to shift from his place.

He closed his eyes, groaning in annoyance.

"Hey, four-eyed guy, scram. I want to talk to my friend." He recognized this voice very well. One of the girls who always disrupted his days at school.

Naomi Januar Wilona, a girl with shoulder-length hair, with red strands among her black hair. The gossip monger and class troublemaker. He hated every time he met her. Unfortunately, they were in the same class.

Very reluctantly, he stood up, letting Naomi take his seat.

Scanning his surroundings, he snorted at the chaos in this class. Even the class president couldn't do anything. This was the situation when the teacher couldn't attend.

Feeling annoyed, he grabbed the thick book on his desk, walked out of the class toward the library building in the corner of the school.

Maintaining his image, he lowered his head when passing by the troublemakers gathered on the stairs.

His hearing seemed to sharpen as he faintly heard conversations among them.

"If you ask me, it's ELMINO. A formidable enemy. At least they have seven members. It sounds impossible when they managed to eliminate the strongest thugs in the neighboring area."

"So far, there's no information about their leader."

"We call him the headless demon."

He plugged his ears again with his earphones. Quickening his steps toward his destination, his fist clenched tightly.

To be continued...

Deska lay sprawled in the middle of the bed, enjoying herself, when she was interrupted by impatient knocking from behind the door.

The girl muttered in annoyance, rising with unsteady steps. She roughly opened the teak wood door.

"Aw, darn, what's your problem-" Deska's mouth snapped shut when she saw her mom standing in front of her with an unfriendly face.

"Nice, calling your mom with such impolite terms. You want your allowance cut, huh?"

Deska laughed awkwardly, scratching her non-itchy neck.

"Sorry, Mom, I thought it was one of my girl friends or something," she replied, a bit nonsensically.

The woman chuckled cynically. "Since when do you have girl friends? You're being delusional. Go out, Jojo is looking for you," she added, then slipped into Deska's room.

This successfully made Deska feel lazy, especially finding her mom starting to inspect the condition of her room.

"Tsk, you, your room is a mess, uneaten food isn't cleaned up, your lifestyle is chaotic, Deska. Mom wonders if you're really a girl. Your behavior is like that of a lazy boy," the woman scolded.

Deska sighed lazily; her morning was welcomed by her mom's nagging. Truly, the lazy day she had planned the night before seemed so bleak.

Her ears felt like they couldn't function normally; the girl scratched her temple, not wanting to linger longer. She might end up being a punching bag for her mom's unending complaints. So, she decided to go to the living room to meet Jonathan.

In the living room, Jonathan shook his head at Deska's disheveled appearance. She seemed unkempt. The girl didn't even feel embarrassed meeting him in such a state, very different from most girls.

Deska continued to yawn until she landed on the long sofa facing Jonathan.

"Darn, you haven't even showered," Jonathan commented openly.

Deska scratched her neck briefly, then looked at Jonathan indifferently.

"So? Are you disturbing my lazy day, Jo?" she said. The girl even casually resumed her lying position on the sofa.

"You're annoying, Des," cursed Jonathan. He knew she wasn't sleeping; she just had her eyes closed. So, Jonathan pulled out a trick to make her open her eyes.

Slowly, the girl's nose began to react as if catching a scent that was intoxicating.

Jonathan chuckled when he put a plastic bag containing martabak on the table. And indeed, Deska immediately rose, her eyes wide, finding the food right in front of her.

"Jojo! Now this is better; I was feeling awkward," she said, grabbing a piece of martabak from the box.

Jonathan just shook his head, observing Deska's joy with the food in her hands.

"So, how's everything with you?"

Deska glanced briefly. "Fine."

Jonathan snorted in frustration. "I've heard about that letter from Aunt Elara."

"Oh."

Just 'oh'? This girl is really hard to predict.

Slowly, Jonathan noticed the girl's facial expression slowly becoming more serious.

"Darn, I'm being transferred to a school with tighter security," Deska whispered, then turned away.

"That means you're leaving me and the other base kids," Jonathan replied with an unreadable expression.

Deska frowned. "Nah, not really. We can still meet, right?" she said, dodging the topic and grabbing another piece of martabak.

"But the chances are very slim," Jonathan continued as if already knowing the girl's future.

"Cih, don't tell me my mom spilled all the details to you?"

Jonathan nodded briefly.

Deska sighed. "I won't be as free as before. Dad hired bodyguards to watch over me. They'll accompany me to and from school. The chances seem slim, but I can-"

"Don't be ridiculous," Jonathan interrupted, knowing Deska's crazy plan would end up impossible.

"Ah, you're not supportive. Do you want to never see me again? You'll only realize you miss me later," Deska retorted.

Jonathan understood how frustrated and disappointed the girl was now.

"I and the base kids will visit your house often. I already got permission from Aunt Elara," he explained.

"It's still not fun. I won't be able to clash with our enemies out there again," she complained.

"Are you the type of girl who seeks trouble, Des? Aren't you tired of being expelled from school?" Jonathan concluded, bewildered.

"Well, well, well, it's up to you. The day after tomorrow, I have to go back to school. Crazy, right? I only got a two-day break."

"No gratitude from you."

"Watch out if this one becomes even more boring; I might skip school again."

"Stress."

Deska squinted at Jonathan. "Hey! Where's my skateboard?"

Jonathan snorted. "Yeah, I'll stop by and get it for you."

Damn, being friends with this girl was draining his money.

________________________________________

Damn, Deska enjoyed her lazy day so much that she almost forgot she had to go back to school tomorrow. More precisely, her new school.

The girl sighed, not wanting her last day off to end in vain, so she made plans for her me-time today.

It felt like the right decision. When else could she enjoy some alone time? Especially looking at the rectangular four-wheeled object leaning beautifully next to her study table.

Deska was impressed. Jonathan really knew her taste. The black skateboard with fiery patterns truly captured her attention.

So, Deska decided to get ready and head out somewhere.

Deska wasn't a girl who liked to linger, so in just a few minutes, she was ready with her destination in mind.

While carrying the skateboard in her hand, Deska went out to her mom, who was busy watering her beloved plants in the front yard.

The woman noticed Deska's arrival and examined her appearance from top to bottom.

"Where are you going, Deska?" she asked while turning off the water flow from the hose.

"Out, Mom," Deska replied, opening a pack of chewing gum and putting it in her mouth.

"Out for what? Your words are hard to trust. You say you're going out, but you come back with a face covered in mud."

"This time, Mom can trust Deska's words," she said. She then raised the skateboard in her hand high. "See? Deska wants some me-time with her favorite thing," she continued, flashing a twisted smile.

For a few moments, there was a verbal exchange between them, ending with a negotiation process where Deska had to return home before noon.

"Okay, if that's the case, Deska, go ahead."

Deska walked towards her trusty steed. Starting the motorcycle's engine, she also strapped the backpack containing her skateboard to her back. Eventually, the girl zoomed away from the house yard.

________________________________________

It seemed like Deska's me-time didn't go quite as planned. She even almost caused a scene in the busy street due to her protest against road users who almost hit her motorcycle.

Damn. Swear by anything, Deska really wanted to teach a lesson to the motorcyclist who lacked etiquette on the road.

How could she not, while she was peacefully riding, suddenly a big motorcycle came against the flow, resulting in Deska's motorcycle almost being hit by the rider if she didn't quickly steer it into the pedestrian area.

Fortunately, there were no pedestrians passing by at that time, so the girl only suffered scratches on the motorcycle.

"Be careful until I meet you again, after you."

To be continued...