In case you haven't been caught up with what's been going on in the previous chapter (or rather, the last chapter of act one), here's a quick recap.

1.) Homecoming week is in full swing, meaning that I'm now a part of the bandwagon (under duress of my father, who's allowing me to have some free time under the condition that I date Marcel) and juggling my now-packed social life and academics.

2.) All eyes are on me to make sure that I stay away from the Outsiders, whom I'm working with to not only expose the Beauitful Teens (Marcel and his friends, even my mom and dad who are the main causes for what's going on).

3.) It's now the day before Homecoming and I was spending the night and following weekend with the Dermotts as planned. And at this moment, I was coming out of the bathroom and had one hell of a bombshell dropped on me, which leads to...

4.) The Titan Club, whom had saved my life from being killed last week and had taken me under my wing as a teenage intern and token mascot, was very familiar to me. Why?

5.) Four of the members (Orynyx, Blue Sentry, Cetrus, and Scion) were revealed to be none other than my own father, Marcel, his dad Andrew (the principal of Sandifer Bay High), and his husband Phillip (the vice-principal) respectively.

And at the moment, there was a simple conjugation that was running on replay in my mind like a bad MC Hammer song even as I took in the cocky grins and domineering stares.

This can't be real.

Therefore, this can't be happening.

This couldn't be real.

Therefore, this couldn't be happening.

This wouldn't be real.

Therefore, this wouldn't be happening.

This shouldn't be real.

Therefore, this shouldn't be happening.

But the more I looked at them and felt more and more nauseated (if not pissed off) before passing out, the more I began to hear another conjugation that was as clear as a bell.

This WAS real.

Therefore, this WAS happening.

And from here, readers, I can only tell you that this story of mine right now is going to get more messed up like the piss-poor version of a Michael Bay movie. Now, are you sure you want to continue to know my story, hmm?

Okay, let's go!

*************

"Kyle?"

"Kyle, dude?"

"Fuck...wasn't meant for...like this..."

"Have to expedite things...will be part...society..."

"What the hell....grandson..."

My eyes fluttered open, my mind being disoriented briefly as I tried sitting up on the bed which I was lying on. "What the fuck?" I mutttered, rubbing my temples.

There was a rush a footsteps from outside. "Sounds like he's awake," I heard Dad mutter from outside.

And then, the rush of events from earlier came: me talking to Mom and the girls about plans for tomorrow, enduring a gruel swim practice before riding with Grandpa to the Dermott house (which explained me being in Marcel's room) and arriving earlier than expected, heading to the bathroom to freshen up, coming out of the bathroom to see...

Four members of the all-male Titan Club superhero league leaving Marcel's room...

All unmasked and smiling...

And revealing themselves as my father (Orynyx), Vice-Principal Phillip (Scion), his husband Principal Andrew (Cetrus), and Marcel (the leader Blue Sentry).

My blood ran cold as it came down on me like a raging cold waterfall that drowned me in a whirlwind of emotions. "Holy fuck," I breathed, taking deep breaths to calm my racing heart. "Holy fucking hell on fucking Earth and heaven above. My father and the Dermotts are part of the Titan Club. My father and the Dermotts are part of the Titan Club. Oh, fucking hell!"

I fumbled in my jeans pockets, frantically searching for my phone. Where the fuck was it? This is something that I gotta share with Tamarious as I've just stumbled upon something that could finally be my meal ticket out of Berkeley.

"You're not calling anyone," I heard the sharp voice of my father, in his red-and-black Orynyx glory, intone as he and Marcel (who was down to his blue tights and briefs) stood in the doorway, staring me down. "We confiscated it so you wouldn't run your mouth to those nobodies and ruin our plans for you."

Marcel nodded as he came to the side of the bed and sitting next to me. "So, babe," he said, all seriousness in his voice and on his face. "You now know the truth: I'm Blue Sentry and the leader of the team as you dad is my second-in-command and advisor. We're part of the Titan Club and have been leading this secret fraternal organization for a long time."

I nodded, not knowing what to say yet feeling mortified and intimidated as this super-powered quarterback (and my boyfriend by arrangement) is next to me.

"And I've been workign with them for the last several years," Dad said as he came towards us, grabbing the desk chair and sitting in front of me as more of the Titan Club members (Who happened to be Marcel's male friends and his dads) aloingside Mom, Diana, and even my grandparents (the rest of htem being human, thank goodness). "Your mother and I made a deal with the Dermotts to not only have you not only be a part of the team but also be Marcel's future husband."

"The Titan Club has been around for the longest," Andrew said as he joined Dad's right while Phillip took the left, "But we've been expecting a newcomer to bring new life to our fraternity. Now that you know who we are and all, it's time to have you know where we stand when it comes to you. You moving here and being a part of Marcel's circle is the starting point for what's to come."

I finally found my voice. "How's that?" I asked.

"Well, we were waiting until after the Homecoming game to get things going," Vincent (the deep-green dressed hero) commented. "We were planning to skip the dance and let you in on our little secret at Marcel's for an 'impromptu' sleepover. But since you came over and saw the Dermotts and your dad unmasked, we'll have to expedite things."

"And that is?"

Dad gave me a wide grin. "Simply put? You're going from our token mascot and teen intern to becoming a part of the team," he said.

"WHAT?!" Grandma and Grandpa exclaimed, looks of horror etched on their faces.

"That's right," Marcel commented, smirking at them before turning to me. "Kyle, you're going to be a superhero with us. It's all set in stone. Your parents and mine discussed this beforehand, your dad informing me that you're too abrasive and were raised by your grandparents to hate people of my caliber. So when the time came, you moved here and our campaign to get you to join us began."

"At first, you put up one hell of a fight and still managed to attract those nobodies," Dad commented, sniffing in disdain. "I was ready to just skip all the bullshit and reveal myself to you when you told me off on the first day. But we all took our time and cracked you down, even when that Telfair girl came to town and started attracting you. I admit that you did started to play by our games very nicely. You'd have fooled us completely...if we didn't know of your true endgame."

My heart dropped. Ah, fuck. They know what's up.

Andrew chuckled darkly at my look of shock. "That's right, Kyle," he said. "We knew that you'd team up with those nobodies, playing nice with us while they worked on outing us. But we stepped up our game and used this week to our advantage. You coming over here and discovering who we all are after you came out of the restroom was pure serendipity to see us at our true forms."

"What we didn't expect was you being mugged by that attacker," Rory (in dark purple) commented. "But we just used the dinner party to get to know you as our hero counterparts so we could keep you busy and away from Tamarious and his gang of losers. It was chaotic with the timing and working to keep our stories straight, but it worked in the end. And now, you know who we are and it's time to reintroduce ourselves to you. I'm Zaphetis, by the way."

Kaleb (in gray and black) stepped up. "I'm Phantomide," he said.

"I'm Green Tide," Vincent commented. "Josiah's Red Vector, in case you didn't see his bright-red costume. "Link's Erix with his purple-and-gray costume. We got some more of the Titan Club members from the sports teams, including Eduardo and Draco, who respectively go by Hazorrix and Aqua Crush."

I couldn't believe it. "Is everyone a superhero?" I asked.

"Not your mother, sisters, grandparents, and all the girls at school," Dad replied, crossing his arms. "There's some of the boys and male teachers who work with us as intel and all, but they're human. And those nobodies aren't even worthy to join us. But you will."

"You can't be serious," I said, my ire on the rise as I sat up on the bed. "You guys can't be serious about all of this."

"We're dead serious, Kyle," Marcel said, his eyes narrowed in silts before they glowed in power. "You're lucky to be in Berkeley, as you've been told already. Your family knows that you've never made your social stride before you moved here. They know that you're lacking in a lot of people skills and lived in a world of mediocrity. If you had stayed in Oakland, your potential might have wasted away to nothing and you would've just...well, let's just say that ignorance is a disease that must be eliminated. You need this, Kyle. You need us more than you realize. And we got major plans for you."

I turned to my dad. "And you agree with all of this?"

Dad nodded. "This was meant to happen, son," he replied. "It's not what you've been taught to think by your grandparents. You being a part of us as a Titan is a new type of cool. It's beautiful. You'll feel better, freer, more gregarious, daring, bolder, stronger, athletic, more dominant. Even though I'm no teenager, I'm part of this since I had the all-American mindset from birth. I've never felt this alive in my life."

"It's a part of the new wave for humanity, the sacred essence of what's needed," Andrew added. "A new finer age, a dynasty that's waiting for you with open arms."

"You can dig deeper, go further, be lighter, gain all the hidden treasures of the world," Phillip said. "Be a real part of the winning team. Be excellent and in tune with what you've wanted to ignore or scorn."

I felt sick. "This is...this is some nightmare straight out of some bad B-movie," I stated. "You can't expect me to to really be a part of all of this. I still have school and college to consider. I have plans, goals, and all that shit. What about my dreams of being a designer or having a normal life."

"Nothing's really normal," Mom scoffed. "And Kyle, you can have all of that and so much more once you join them. Why waste yourself with working hard and slaving away when you can gain all of that with little effort? You can have all the doors that were locked and kept out of your reach unlocked and ripe for the taking once you become a member of the Titan Club."

"And not only that, think about what's at stake for those nobodies," Dad intoned.

That caught my attention. "What do you mean by that?" I said lowly.

"You may have noticed that their group has gone smaller for a while, right?" Marcel asked me. "Well, what would you think if I told you that the group will be no more if you refuse our little offer to join us?"

"You bastard," I seethed, keeping my voice calm. "They have no part of this."

"Oh, but they do," Dad replied, his voice harsh yet calm. "They're already suffering from Omarion's untimely murder and the Goths are basically nonexistent as are those religious kids- all of them exiled or transferred to new schools. If you continue to rebuff us...then their blood will be on your hands."

"But if you take our offer and become one of us, then they'll be kept safe for as long as you play ball with us," Phillip added. "Of course, they can't know what we are or how you're going to be involved. Rather, they won't know anything since they'll be on the verge of expulsion if they continue to push our buttons. But if you keep them off our backs and join our brotherhood, then they'll be safe from any...threats that are too close to home. There are worse monsters to face."

I gulped loudly, taking in all the domineering looks on the guys' faces. On the one hand, I wanted to rebuff their little offer and take my chances to knock these fools out before taking my grandparents and getting away from these folks while the getting was good. If not for the dark feeling of helplessness, I'd gladly try and fight these suckers to the death and put them down like dirty dogs.

But I knew that the facts still remained the same.

Dad had me dangling on a thin string with the lives of Tamarious and his clan and friends in my hands. If I said no, then they'd be dead before I could blink. And I needed to make sure that stay alive at all costs. Plus, who cccould say that my grandparents were safe?

I had to protect them all, even if it meant going against everything that I hated.

"Well, will you be tied to the stars...or sink to your doom like a rock?" Dad asked. "Are you for the Titan Club or against us?"

I took a deep breath. "I'm in." I said firmly.

"I'd knew you'd see reason," Dad purred as he shook my hand. "You won't regret this, Kyle."

I suddenly felt the stinging jab of a needle before I was soon knocked out. "Respect yourself, Kyle," I heard Marcel intone gently.

And just like that, my life was about to turn upside-down and inside out.

And so it begins, ladies and germs!

Coming up, I'm giving you a look inside Kyle's transformation as he goes from human to superhuman. And let's just say that things are...well, stay tuned to see how things go down!

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