Thankfully, my best friend, Rukaiya, will be attending school with me. When she begged her dad to let her stay with me, he decided to move here with her. I’m still not sure why, it seemed strange at the time, but now that we’re both here, I’m happy to have someone I know close by.
And I feel slightly less alone than I did in the big city.
As I head toward the grassy quad, I spin on my heel, trying to figure out where I’m supposed to go next. Each class I walk into is intimidating. There are so many students. Who would’ve thought a small town can house this many people? Fear trickles through me at the thought of doing all this without my father guiding me.
When I was growing up, he would be the one to offer advice, to tell me where to go, how to act. I suppose, since I’m nineteen, I should be used to being on my own, being independent, and I guess I am to a certain extent, but my stomach has been coiled tight since I woke up this morning.
Glancing at my schedule, I take note of my next class and turn in a circle in an attempt to find the building I’m meant to be heading toward, but confusion settles like a lead weight in my gut.
“Lost, pretty girl?” The question comes from behind me, causing me to pivot into the hard body of a boy… no, a man. Definitely not a freshman. Broad shoulders encased in a black shirt that looks a little too tight around the biceps. His torso tapers toward hips and thighs in torn dark jeans.
“I… Uhm…” My words are stuck in my throat when I trail my stare back up into eyes the color of a cloudless day—bright and luminous, shimmering with mischief.
“Don’t be scared,” he quips. “I won’t bite, well… not unless you ask me to, then I’ll gladly oblige.” His baby blue eyes sparkle and I find myself relaxing somewhat.
“This place is a maze to me.”
“Let’s see,” he says, tugging the page from my trembling fingers and scanning the information. “Ah, you have good old Harding today.” Something about the way he says this doesn’t give me confidence in my next class.
“Is that a good or a bad thing?” I quip, trying to calm my erratic heartbeat. The guy is gorgeous. His eyebrows are black, along with his cropped hair, a stark contrast to the smooth pale skin that makes the tips of my fingers tingle to feel him—to feel if he’s sculpted from porcelain with his sharp features and chiseled jaw. When he tips his head to the side, an unruly strand of onyx hair falls across his left eye, teasing the piercing that twinkles in the sunlight.
His full lips quirk into a grin, making the ring through his lower lip glint at me. “Mmm. . . Depends,” he chuckles, gripping my shoulder and turning me toward the left-wing of the looming building. He starts walking, leading me closer to the wooden door that’s sitting wide open at the moment.
“Depends on?” My question comes out croaky, my nerves twisting as the heat of his fingertips burn into me.
He doesn’t respond, merely makes his way toward the opening to my history class. Students file into the classroom. The stranger, holding onto my arm, stops, holds out his hand, and I take my schedule from his strong fingers.
“If you like an asshole who thinks he’s god’s gift to this earth.” This time, the smile I’m met with makes my stomach somersault wildly. Dimples peek out from both cheeks as he regards me.
“I don’t actually,” I retort, causing him to chuckle.
“Then you’ll enjoy the rest of your year.” He doesn’t wait for me to respond before he starts walking away. I watch his retreating back, and I’m about to turn away when he stops. “Be careful of who you trust here,” the alluring stranger tells me before he’s swallowed by the crowd of students who make their way toward the door where I’m standing.
I didn’t catch his name.
But I have a feeling I’ll be seeing him again.
The moment I walk into the house, I find it empty. I wonder if Gran is at the library down the road. She mentioned it’s one of her favorite places, and I forgot to tell her I’d like to visit it as well.
But, first things first, I need to get my textbooks ready for tomorrow’s classes. Today was uneventful, except for the handsome guy who walked me to History class. I didn’t see him again, and I have to admit, I was disappointed.
In the kitchen, I set a mug under the Keurig and press the button for a strong black coffee. The inky liquid trickles into the porcelain mug as I replay the events of the day in my mind. Five classes and all of them felt overwhelming. Doubt settles deep in my gut; I don’t know if I can actually do this.