The final bell echoed through the school, a welcome reprieve for most students. Kendrick slung his backpack over one shoulder as he strolled toward the parking lot. Beside him, King and Prince followed, weaving through the lingering clusters of students. The air was charged with the casual energy of freedom, yet their conversation veered toward a weightier topic.

"Did you see Star and King in the hallway earlier?" Prince asked, his tone teasing. He elbowed Kendrick lightly. "Looked pretty intense."

Kendrick's jaw tightened. "Yeah, I saw."

King smirked. "You can't be jealous, don't you have a thing for Zara?"

"Jealous of what?" Kendrick shot back, his tone sharper than intended.

Prince raised his hands in mock surrender. "Whoa, easy, man. Just saying, it looked like a moment, you're ignoring the Zara accusations "

Prince laughed trying to stop a tense mood from happening between his loyal best friend and brother.

King shrugged. "We talked. That's all."

"Didn't look like 'just talking,'" Prince said, wagging his eyebrows. "Come on, spill it. What's going on with you two?"

King hesitated, his usual confidence faltering. He glanced at Kendrick, then back at Prince. "Fine. I like her. Okay?"

Prince stopped walking, his face lighting up like Christmas morning. "Called it!" he declared, loud enough to draw glances from a few students passing by. "I knew there was something going on."

"Keep it down," King muttered, shoving Prince lightly. "It's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal?" Prince repeated, grinning. "Dude, you just admitted you like Star. That's, like, huge. What are you going to do about it?"

King sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know yet. I told her earlier, but... she didn't exactly have a response."

Kendrick, who had been silent up to this point, finally spoke. "Did you really think now was the best time to tell her?"

King frowned, his gaze narrowing. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Kendrick stopped walking, turning to face him fully. "It means maybe you should've thought about everything she's dealing with before dropping that on her."

"What do you care?" King shot back, his voice defensive. "It's between me and Star."

"It's not just about you and Star," Kendrick said, his voice low but firm. "We're all trying to figure things out. The group's falling apart, and you think confessing your feelings is going to fix everything?"

"Whoa, whoa," Prince interjected, stepping between them. "Let's all just... take a breath, okay? No need to turn this into a thing."

"Its not like you were apart of the group anyways" King rolled his eyes.

Kendrick eyes widened. "Ouch dude," Prince said.

"It started Off Me,Cherry, Prince,Kiara, Timmy, Milly, Bubbles, Zara, Star, Apollo, Yuno, and Victor"

"We were the original 12." Kings eyes glared at Kendrick

"I've always been there for her not only now just so I can look like a good guy"

"Your better off leaving her to me" King spat.

Kendrick shook his head, brushing past them. "Whatever. Do what you want."

King watched him go, his jaw tightening. "What's his problem?"

Prince clapped a hand on King's shoulder. "Dude, relax. He's just... processing."

"Processing what?" King asked, exasperated.

Prince grinned knowingly. "Oh, come on. You can't tell me you haven't noticed."

"Noticed what?" King asked, genuinely confused.

"Seriously?" Prince laughed. "Kendrick's into Star too. Has been for a while. And now you've gone and made things awkward for everyone."

King blinked, his mind reeling. "You're kidding."

"Nope," Prince said, popping the p.

"Yall fell Inlove with the same girlll" He sang. 

"Idiot" His brother laughed

 "What I mean Is, it's not like he's said it outright, but come on. It's obvious." Prince added

King sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Great. Just what we need. More drama."

"Hey," Prince said with a shrug. "At least it's not boring."

King shot him a look. "Not helping."

Prince laughed, throwing an arm around King's shoulders. "Relax, man. We'll figure it out. Just... maybe give Star some space. She's got enough on her plate without two of her friends fighting over her."

King nodded reluctantly. "Yeah. You're right."

Prince grinned. "Of course I'm right. I'm always right."

"Sure you are," King muttered, but he couldn't help the small smile that crept onto his face.

Kendrick's Thoughts

As Kendrick walked alone down the hallway, his mind churned with unspoken words. Prince's teasing, King's confession—it all felt like a punch to the gut. He'd always been good at keeping his feelings in check, but seeing King and Star together, hearing King admit his feelings... it was too much.

You waited too long, a small voice in his head whispered. And now it's too late.

He shook the thought away, shoving his hands into his pockets. Whatever he was feeling, it didn't matter. The group was falling apart, and if they didn't figure things out soon, they'd lose everything.

Including her. The weirdest thing of all Is that he had the same feelings he had for Star for Zara.