POTENTIAL: TWENTY-SEVEN

**ALEX POV**

"Wake up, love birds!" Maica loudly exclaimed, simultaneously opening the curtains. The sun's intense rays hit my face directly, making me squint due to its blinding glare.

I moaned as I stretched my whole body, but I wondered why there seemed to be something heavy on my stomach. Out of curiosity, I looked down and wasn't surprised to see Sky's hand. I glanced at him, still sleeping with his face hidden on my neck. It was kind of sexy, but then I remembered that the girls were here.

"Sky?" I called out to the man embracing me.

"Hmm?" was his only response as he tightened his grip. He pressed his face even closer to my neck. My face started to burn as I imagined our position.

"Get up," I urged him.

"I'm still sleepy," he complained.

"We're all sleepy, but we need to get up!" I reminded him, gently shaking his body.

"It's okay, Alex," Maica suddenly interjected. "We just got a message from our class secretary, and she said that classes are suspended today due to a ceremony as a tribute for the five," she explained, busy brushing her hair. She was still smiling, and I knew why. I just covered my face upon realizing that Sky and I were caught. "What's your status now?" Maica suddenly asked.

"What status?" I raised an eyebrow.

"You know, in a relationship, still dating, officially a couple, or maybe it's complicated," she listed them. I fell silent upon Maica's statement, realizing that Sky and I didn't really have a label. "It can't be that you don't have a label with your current situation," Maica stated as she looked at us.

I just looked at Sky, who was still sleeping. "I'm not sure yet, to be honest."

"That's bad," the girl commented. "You better know your label. It's for your own sake. Make sure to come down before 8:30. We'll have breakfast," Maica reminded us before leaving the room.

I sighed when I thought about Maica's statement. Know your label.

Tsk! I'll worry about labels later. We have more important things to be concerned about than our relationship status.

I noticed Sky moving and distancing himself from me. From that moment, I could breathe easily. I got up and started getting ready. I also put the pillows I used back in their place. Actually, I had a hard time arranging the pillows, so I just used telekinesis to make it look neater than before.

When I made sure the pillows were arranged properly, I immediately turned around. And then I saw Sky cleaning the bed we slept in using his telekinesis as well. When he finished, I took it from him using the same technique and placed it with the other pillows.

"Good morning," I greeted him as I approached while he sat on the edge of the bed. He looked at me, and I was surprised when he suddenly pulled me into a hug. He buried his face in my chest, further surprising me. "Still sleepy?" I didn't receive a response from him, so I just messed up his hair. "Let's go. Maica's waiting downstairs."

Sky finally let go of me, and I fixed his hair. When it was okay, we both went out and headed to the kitchen. As we approached, the smell of a cooking meal became stronger. When it came into view, we saw Maica cooking while Trisha set the table. Trisha caught a glimpse of us, causing us to stop.

"Any reservation for two, Sir?" she joked, making both of us laugh. Trisha continued preparing the table, and Sky helped her. I decided to help Maica since I usually served as her assistant cook. After a while, Maica and I finished cooking. We all went to the table and sat down. Trisha insisted on praying, and when it finished, we immediately started eating.

"Trisha? Why did Rick choose you to adopt instead of boys? If he wanted to replace his child, he should've adopted boys," Maica suddenly asked.

"I didn't ask. But maybe he didn't want to hurt himself more, so he chose to adopt a girl to make it less difficult for him," Trisha explained, a gesture that Maica understood.

"What do you do inside the orphanage?" Maica asked again.

"As one of the eldest, it's our job to take care of the younger ones, like preparing their food, giving them baths, and watching over them during playtime. When the Sisters are busy, we're the ones putting them to sleep, especially the babies," she shared, impressing me. Trisha wasn't any different from us. We all grew up accustomed to household chores.

We were all disturbed when our phones simultaneously rang. And when it came with simultaneous notifications, it meant it came from the school bulletin page. It was a live stream of the ceremony, and someone was giving a speech. A familiar voice.

"Quinn," Trisha muttered, and Quinn's face slowly appeared on the screen. She had a sad and mourning look as she delivered her speech, facing thousands of students.

"This crazy girl really knows how to act," Maica commented, seething with anger. Well, not just her, but all of us. I immediately exited the livestream and turned off my phone because I couldn't stand her presence.

"So, Sky? What's the plan?" Maica asked. We all looked at Sky, who had been silent.

"We'll end this... tonight."

******

"Are you sure about what you're going to do?" Tita asked worriedly as she looked at us, getting ready for what we were about to do tonight.

"We need to stop her, Ma, before she can find her next victim," Maica replied.

"Can't you just report this to the authorities?"

"The police won't believe us, Ma, and we don't have enough evidence to show them, except for our two eyes."

"Don't worry, Tita. I'll make sure Maica stays safe," Sky reassured Tita, and Maica agreed.

Tita sighed, a sign of surrender. "Just be careful. If anything bad happens, call me."

"Thank you, Ma."

Maica hugged Tita, and Trisha arrived just in time. We quickly said goodbye to Tita and left. Trisha allowed Sky to drive her car for a faster trip. After making sure everything was okay, Sky immediately drove the car towards Quinn's apartment.

While on our way, we noticed two swiftly moving police mobiles behind us with blaring sirens. Sky immediately pulled over to let them pass, but I wondered why he accelerated and seemed to be following them.

"What is it, Sky?" I asked.

"Uhm... guys? Quinn struck again," Maica reported. Knowing that she had struck again made me even angrier. I was more determined to finish her.

"Who?" Trisha asked.

"Mikee Ramirez." My eyes widened upon hearing the victim's name. If I'm not mistaken, Mikee Ramirez was our class treasurer, and now she's Quinn's victim.

"We're here," Sky commented, prompting us to look ahead. In front of us was a crowd watching the crime scene, with police officers guarding the area. The four of us got out of the car and joined the onlookers, trying to see what was happening. As we approached, the gruesome and horrifying sight of Mikee shocked us. Her body was dismembered into six parts: the torso, the head, and two hands and feet.

"There's Elaisa," Maica pointed to the girl talking to a police officer on our left.

"Alex," Sky called me, signaling to listen to their conversation. I activated my clairaudience until I could hear something.

"Is that it?" the police asked.

"Yes, sir. That's all that happened," Elaisa replied, trembling with fear.

Shit! I'm too late.

"Just keep listening, Alex, and follow that detective," Sky instructed, which I agreed to. I observed the detective that Sky was referring to, the one Elaisa spoke to earlier. The detective was approached by a man around his age.

"What did she say?" the man asked.

"The witness said the attacker was a person wearing a hoodie and jeans. The strange thing is that the suspect's fingers turned into tentacles, which caused the victim's injuries."

"Tentacles? What kind of nonsense is that?"

"That's what she said."

"Kids these days. Tell them to clean it up. The crowd is growing."

"Yes, sir."

I quickly deactivated my clairaudience and calmed myself. We returned to the car and continued our journey to Quinn's apartment.

"What did they say?" Sky asked while driving.

"Mikee was attacked in front of Elaisa," I replied briefly.

"Directly in front? Wasn't she afraid of being recognized?" Maica questioned.

"Hiding or fear is not her main goal. She's capable of fighting anyone, even the cops. Maybe she thinks she's above all of us because of what she is," Trisha explained, a statement we all agreed with. Trisha was right. In the food chain analogy, Quinn was the predator, and we were the prey. But she forgets that everything has its opponent. "Stop right here, Sky," Trisha suddenly ordered, and Sky complied.

"That's Quinn's apartment," Trisha pointed to a building with a sign that read "Vic's Apartment." It was one of the most famous apartments in the city, so I was sure many people lived there.

We got out of the car and headed to the apartment's entrance. The doorbell chimed, alerting the old lady at the reception desk, who looked at us with disdain as if we had wronged her.

"Hello, Madame," Trisha greeted the old woman.

"What do you want?" was her strict response. I didn't like this kind of landlord.

"We would like to visit a friend. Is that okay?" Trisha asked.

"And what are you going to do?"

"We just want to check on her because she hasn't been going out for a few days."

"And who are you visiting?"

Trisha looked at me, not knowing Quinn's full name.

"Quinn Reese," Maica quickly said.

"Let me check my list." The old lady nodded. Trisha quickly nodded back. The woman grabbed a notebook and searched for Quinn's name. "Room 511. 5th floor," the old lady said, and we thanked her.

We quickly headed to the elevator, and Sky pressed the number five. After a minute, we reached the 5th floor. A hallway greeted us with doors on both sides. We searched for Room 511 and found it at the end of the hallway. There was nothing unusual about the door except for a foul smell inside. Sky grabbed his gun, and the girls took out their knives.

"Do you have the key?" Maica asked.

"No need." Sky used his telekinesis to open the door, and it seemed to work. The door screeched open as I pushed it using the same technique. The room was dark, and it seemed empty. Sky entered first, followed by me. The girls followed, and we were surprised when the lights suddenly turned on.

"Sorry," Maica apologized, raising the peace sign. We explored the entire room, but I didn't notice anything unusual. The belongings were in order, and there were no items that could tell us about her. "Guys? There's breaking news," Maica reported, prompting us to approach her.

"What did they say?" I asked while watching her read whatever was on her phone.

"Ten children are missing from an orphanage," she announced.

"She used children again?" I angrily said. We were all startled when something fell suddenly. It made a clinking sound as if it were a spoon or fork. When we looked, it was just a knife that Trisha dropped.

"Trisha, are you okay?" Maica asked with concern. Trisha's eyes widened, and I felt her body tremble. She seemed scared, but not of-

"Orphanage," I whispered. I faced Trisha again and tried to calm her down. I wanted to know if my hunch was correct. "Trisha? Are there other orphanages here?" I asked her.

Trisha slowly looked into my eyes, and I could see the fear in her. I was expecting her to nod, but my eyes widened when I saw her shake her head. It confirmed that there were no other orphanages in the city, except for the one in the news. And if I'm not mistaken, it's the same orphanage where Trisha came from.

"We have to save them," I declared while looking at Sky with a stern face.