My Plunderer System

While Milo was locked arm in arm with Maria, whether it was against his will or not, Zach and Krista ended up with seats next to each other. The two had only recently come to the realization that they liked each other, and because of this, they still were unsure whether the feelings they had were mutual. Because of this fact, there was a certain level of awkward tension in the air while watching the combat tournament, as if both parties were still unsure of whether or not they should make a move.

Allana knew that Krista had started to develop a crush on Zach following their study break they took in Zach's room a little over a week before. Because of this, she was keeping a close eye on the pair. Chris began to notice this, and leaned over to Allana, signaling he had something he wanted to whisper in her ear.

She leaned closer so he could say what he wanted to say, "Why do you keep looking at Krista and Zach, is something going on that I don't know about?"

Allana wasn't someone who you wanted to know your secrets as she was a big gossip. She went on to explain what had happened when she, Krista and Milo went to study in Zach's room, and all the stares that Krista had thrown Zach's way, along with her reaction to Allana's teasing. Chris grinned, as he could now tease Zach about the whole thing, and who knows maybe, he could be the flame wielding cupid that the two needed.

After Milo excused himself, Chris tried to get Zach to run to get some snacks with him as well. Once the pair had gotten some distance away from their seats, Chris finally asked the question, "So what's going on between you and Krista?"

"I'm not sure, she's definitely been acting differently than she normally would when talking to me," Zach responded.

"I meant with you dude, you're acting strange too," Chris said back.

Hearing that someone else had noticed that he had been fidgety while sitting next to Krista had Zach hoping that she didn't notice. After looking at Chris's face, he knew that there was no way to hide what was on his mind, so he spilled the tea. Hearing about the strange feeling Zach was feeling around Krista made Chris flash a devilish grin.

"Don't you dare say anything," Zach said to Chris when seeing his reaction to what he said.

"I won't," Chris said, "but it's a good piece of info to know. Have you talked to Milo or her about it yet?"

"No, I haven't but I plan on it, now let's leave it at that," Zach said, cutting off the conversation.

Eventually the pair bumped into Milo who also left to get some food, as well as to get a break from Maria. Chris gave Zach a look as if to say, it'd probably be better to talk sooner rather than later, before excusing himself, leaving the two friends to their own devices. After Chris was gone, Milo turned to Zach and gave him a weird look.

"I need to tell you something Milo," Zach said.

Seeing that the situation took a turn towards a serious mood, Milo was a little nervous to find out what Zach had to tell him.

"So the thing is," Zach continued, "I'm not a hundred percent sure yet, but…" Zach paused for a second making Milo wonder what the heck he could be talking about. Did Milo do something to make him angry? Did he not want to be friends anymore? Or worst of all, did he find out about the system?

"Ugh screw it, I'm just gonna come right out and say it," Zach finally went on, "I think I have a crush on Krista."

Hearing the news Milo was shocked, "he had that much trouble thinking of how to tell me that?" he thought.

Zach looked at him to see his reaction to the words, which made Milo feel the need to reply to the statement. "What about it?" he asked nonchalantly. Milo had already told Krista about his thoughts on the two getting together, and he didn't see any drawbacks coming from it.

Zach didn't know what to think, he had just told Milo that he had a crush on his best friend, and not only that, but they had gone on a date a few weeks ago. "So you aren't mad at me? I thought you'd have more to say, considering your history with her."

"After everything we've been through, I've seen her date a few guys, but all of them were guys I considered to be trash. After trying to voice my opinion to her, she made a point to remind me that it was her life and not mine, even if I protect her like a sister. Unlike the guys she went out with back in New York though, you're someone I consider to be a good guy."

Hearing Milo's explanation Zach hadn't thought about whether she'd dated other guys, and hearing that Milo thought he would be good for her, made him feel a bit more at ease about something happening between the two. "Didn't you two try to go on a date a few weeks ago?" When Zach asked this, the pair had already received their orders and Milo was in the middle of a drink causing him to make a spit take.

"Yeah we did, but please don't remind me of it, it was uber awkward and we both decided not to speak of it again," he said. After talking to Krista on the ferris wheel the day before, he and her had agreed that they would never speak of it again as it was the most awkward moment the two had ever been through together in their 16 years of knowing each other. This even included the time when the two were 6 and Milo had asked their parents why she and him didn't have the same parts down there after taking a bath together, which grew into quite the inside joke between their families.

After the two had a laugh, they made their way back to their seats and sat down just as the semifinals were about to begin. The 3 students Milo thought had a chance of winning were still in the competition and two of them would be forced to face off in this round. The student who could gigantify ended up being placed up against the student who could grow spikes from their body. The match took longer than previous matches due to both the competitors being quite skilled. Eventually the power of Gigantification outlasted the student who could grow spikes, and the finals match competitors had been decided and there was one last break before the finals match began.

Eventually an announcement had been made and the crowd began to cheer. The top two competitors made their way to the stage, where they got an introduction reminiscent of a pro wrestling match, with nicknames, theme music and more. Once the introductions were over, the match began, the finalists were the student who could gigantify themself and the physical clone student. The match went on for a while, but similar to David and Goliath, the student who was able to grow to a massive size was defeated.

After the match's conclusion, the students were treated for their injuries and the awards ceremony began. The students were all given medals for their achievements by the academy's headmaster and the tournament was finally over.

Milo and his friends began to stand up and make their way down to the exit, with the tournament over, the final part of the festival was a fireworks show. The group all decided to watch from the roof of their dorm building. Once they arrived, the fireworks began. The group all made their way over to the balcony that overlooked the square and watched the colorful explosions light up the night sky.

Once again, Milo was positioned next to Maria, and Zach next to Krista. Maria pulled Milo's arm around her shoulder and settled up close to him. His face immediately went red and he was too flustered to say anything or try and remove his arm from its new resting place. Zach and Krista on the other hand were standing close to each other, but both were fidgeting and too afraid to make a move. Seeing the pair standing there, Chris snuck over and whispered into Zach's ear, "trust me," before he proceeded to grab his arm and place it around Krista's shoulder, before Zach could protest. Krista wasn't expecting this at all, but leaned into him, seeing her reaction Zach heaved a sigh of relief, "maybe she likes me back and something really will come out of this," he thought.

The group continued to watch the balls of colorful flames ignite across the academy's skyline as the festival came to a close. Summer would bring many new changes and experiences for the group of friends and Milo also had a new goal, find the person who would create his next piece of equipment.