The fist was launched, swiftly and forcefully. The long, blond-haired 19-year-old boy with brown eyes and a blond goatee quickly dodged his attacker, a 16-year-old boy with short black hair and grey eyes. “Whoa,” the blond cried. They were at a park, with short green grass and a fishpond nearby. There was nobody else in sight other than these two boys.
  The 16-year-old glared, “Shoot!”
The 19-year-old stared at the boy curiously, “Evan, what’s up? Did you call me here to beat the living tar out of me?” 
  Evan continued to glower at the 19-year-old, “Yes Shane, I did.”
  “You…” Shane shook his head, surprised at the bluntness of the confession. “Why?”
Evan pointed an accusing finger, “Because of what you did to my sister!”
  Shane still looked lost, “Mari? What did I do to her?”
  “Drop the innocent act; we both know what you did!” Calming himself down, Evan began explaining, “You’ve been dating my sister for the past 6 months. When I first met you, I didn’t care for you in the slightest. In the months that followed, I started getting used to you, maybe even respecting you. That is, until 2 weeks ago…” Evan began feeling his fingers curl into tight balls, “Victor Cromwell began ‘teasing you’ about all the ‘other women.’ This thought of other women got me thinking, so I recruited a partner and we began looking into you. And now, I finally know the truth!” Running forward, Evan raised his fist, “You’ve been cheating on my sister—with three other girls!!”
  Shane moved quickly to the left as Evan passed him again, his fist hitting the side of a thick tree. Pain began rippling through his hand and arm and he clenched his teeth in order to prevent from crying out in pain. Shane said, “Hey, it’s not like Mari and I were going out seriously…”
  Clutching his injured hand, Evan shot Shane a dark look, “I talked with my sister just a few days ago about you and her. She said that you two were officially going steady and have been for nearly 2 months!” Evan face seemed to grow darker and more threatening as he asked, “Are you suggesting that my sister was lying?”
  Shane smiled haughtily, “I’m not suggesting she lied. I’m suggesting your sister just misunderstood. Misunderstandings are a part of everyday life you know.” Turning away, Shane waved. “Later, I’ve got other stuff to do--”
  With surprising strength, Evan grabbed Shane by the back of his collar and forced him onto the ground. “Did I say you could leave?”
  Rubbing his bottom, Shane gave Evan a look, “Geez! Now I think I know why the kids at your school call you Shadow. It’s not because you dwell and sulk in the shadows, it’s because you’re a dark and violent brat!”
  “You’re not leaving until you admit what you’ve done!”
  Shane cockily stood up and brushed himself off, “A confession? You seem pretty sure that I’ve already done something stupid and you still want a confession?”
  “I want to hear you say it,” Evan growled.
  “Is that a threat?” Shane shook his head arrogantly, “Look, maybe you are right. Maybe I am cheating on Mari. But even if you got a court of people to testify against me…” He began towering over the boy, “Mari would never believe you Shadow.”
  For a few minutes, Evan stared back defiantly. Then, looking over Shane’s shoulder, nodded, “Mari…”
  Surprised, Shane turned around. Standing only a few feet behind him was a tall, long-blond-haired girl with beautiful blue eyes. Mari frowned as she stared back at him. Shane immediately began to backtrack, “M-Mari! I didn’t know you—well I don’t mean that…h-how long have you…?”
  Mari didn’t respond; she just stared at Shane, a look of betrayal in her eyes.
  “We’ve seen enough,” a voice said from behind.
  Shane glanced to Mari’s right side; there was another boy, even younger than Evan, at her side. He had short blond hair and his eyes…they were different colors! His right eye was a shade of light blue while his left eye was a shade of bright green. The boy folded his arms and looked to Shane, “Mari and Evan have been best friends for years. If you’re trying to turn them against each other with your lies, it may not turn out the way you want.”
  Shane furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, “Who the heck are you? What are you doing here?”
  “Leon Myers, my pals call me Ace,” the boy said. He looked to Evan, a thin line on his face, “Having fun with your new plaything, partner?”
  “Huh—partner?!” Shane quickly looked to Mari, “Mari, please! Let me explain--”
  Mari shook her head. “Leon and Evan have told me everything I need to know Shane.” She frowned deeply at him, “It’s over between us.”
  Shane looked playfully exasperated, “What—over? …Is this a joke? You’re saying that you’re going to trust a bunch of little snot-nosed kids more than your own boy--”
  Irritated, Evan circled in front of Shane and smacked his fist into the man’s gut. Shane crumbled to the ground in a heap. Mari widened her eyes with astonishment. Leon irked, “Ooh…that’s going to leave a mark.”
  Looking up, Shane began fidgeting nervously as Evan’s dagger eyes began stabbing him, “You’re fortunate that I don’t break every single bone in your body Shane.”
  Recovering from the blow, Shane cautiously stood up. Before he could say anything, Leon spoke next, “I’d take this opportunity to hightail it out of here Shane. You’ve overstayed your welcome and I don’t know if Mari and I will be able to hold Evan back.”
  After staring at the 3 of them for a few moments, Shane finally walked away, defeated and depressed.
  When he had disappeared from sight, Evan turned to his sister. Mari smiled painfully, “I guess you and Dad were both right, huh Evan?”
  Nodding, Evan frowned, “Still…I’d like to apologize.”
  “Apologize?”
  “It’s your love life. I probably shouldn’t have poked my nose into something like this and I shouldn’t be making decisions for you.”
  Smiling, Mari touched her brother’s cheek, “Normally you’d be right, but in this case I think its okay. You were only concerned about me and you didn’t want me to hook up with someone who would go out behind my back.”
  The two stared at each other. Finally, Mari began to leave, “I’ll see you at home Evan. Thank you.” She left the park.
  Looking to Leon, Evan nodded, gratified, “Thank you for helping me look into Shane.”
  Nodding, Leon frowned, “You think we’ll ever see the likes of him again?”
  “If he knows what’s good for him, no.”
  Bobbing his head up and down again, Leon took a quick look at the grass before looking to Evan and said “…I was happy to help you Evan. I enjoyed helping you uncover the truth about this creep and I’ll admit, watching you smack him in the gut…” Shaking his head in amusement, Leon sobered up again, “But I can’t help but get the feeling that things…could’ve gone smoother. I mean…suppose we run into him again, except next time with a grudge?”
  “…Perhaps your right,” Evan admitted, “And maybe we will see him again. But as long as you stand up for what’s right, whether it’s a belief or another person, I think that’s all that matters.”
  Leon grinned, “You always were ‘the ends justify the means’ kind of guy.”
  A small smile appeared on Evan’s face. Turning he began walking away, “Goodbye Ace.”
  Spinning in the opposite direction, Leon smiled and nodded to himself, “See ya around Shadow.”