I’m hoping that Auden will be different. She already feels different to me. I can feel this connection with her and I know that she’s it. She’s the one for me and I will do anything to make her realize that and to make her mine.
The future has never really held much appeal to me because everything was already mapped out. I would go to an Ivy League college before settling down and getting married and living off of my family’s oil wealth. It always sounded so boring to me but now that Auden is in the picture, the future seems like this exciting thing that I can’t wait to get to.
I picture us graduating high school and going to college together. I’ll propose and she’ll say yes and then we’ll get married. We’ll have a bunch of kids and have the big family that neither of us has but that we both desperately want and we’ll grow old together.
I hold onto that future as I eat dinner alone and get ready for bed. I fall asleep that night with a smile on my face as I think about working towards that future with my girl tomorrow.
I wake up the next morning and as soon as I remember my girl and how in a half-hour, I’ll be with her again, my smile returns. I hop out of bed and race through my morning routine excited and anxious to beat my girl before she leaves her house so that I can pick her up and drive her to school. I scarf down my breakfast and slam through the garage door and into my car before I crank the engine and back out of my driveway. I speed all the way to my girl’s house and pull up out front right as she opens the door and walks outside.
I hop out of the car and round the hood as she walks towards me and smile as I open the door for her. “Your chariot awaits, Milady.”
She smiles at me as she slides inside and I close the door behind her. A moment later I’m sliding back behind the wheel and turning to her.
“You look beautiful today, Auden.” I say and I grin wider when I notice her ducking her head and the sweet blush stain her cheeks.
“You too.” She says as I turn the car towards school.
I don’t think that I’ve ever driven this slow before in my life but I’m in no hurry to get to school. I’m happy to stay in the car just driving around and talking with her but all too soon we pull into the school parking lot.
I run around the front of the car and open her door for her before I grab her bag and slide it over my shoulder. I slip my arm around her before we head into school. I ignore the stares and whispers that we get from other students easily because it’s hard to focus on anything when I have Auden in my arms. Unfortunately, my girl seems to notice the stares and I can tell she feels uncomfortable by them. I hold her tighter to me as we make our way to homeroom. I’ll need to figure out what exactly bothers her so much about other people staring at her so that I can fix it. I won’t let anything or anyone stand in the way of making Auden mine.
Chapter 6
Auden
* * *
When I walked out the front door, I couldn’t believe that Ryker was there waiting for me. I wanted to squeal with glee but I figured if he saw me do that I might die of embarrassment. Just like yesterday afternoon, the conversation flows freely between us. It feels like I’ve known him for years and not just 24 hours. There’s just something about him that feels like it clicks or like we have some kind of connection. It doesn’t hurt that he’s the hottest guy that I’ve ever seen.
I’ve never been attracted to anyone before and I used to think that maybe there was something wrong with me but I guess not because I am definitely attracted to Ryker. I think that maybe Ryker might be attracted to me too. I wonder if he’ll make a move soon. Or ask me out on a date. I’ve never been on a date before.
We pull into the school parking lot and Ryker opens my door again before he reaches out and grabs my bag from me. He wraps his arm around my back and leads me through the school halls and to our homeroom. We take our seats in the back of the room and we talk about our classes and how I’m liking the school and town so far. He mentions a new restaurant opening and I hold my breath, wondering if he’s going to ask me to go there with him but we get interrupted by the bell.
“I’ll walk you to your next class.” He says as we stand and gather up our bags.
We maneuver down the hall, until we get to my first period, math. I daydream throughout my entire first class until the bell rings and I scramble to pack up my stuff and get out the door. Just as I stand up from my desk, a group of girls approach me.
“You’re the new girl, right?”
“Um, yeah. My name is Auden.”
“Right. Well, since you don’t seem to know yet, I’ll tell you. Ryker isn’t into you. He just feels sorry for the new girl with no friends. He’s not going to go after some little nobody when he could have any girl that he wanted. His family is loaded and he’s hot as hell. He’s going to go to an Ivy League school in a couple of months and forget all about you. Do yourself a favor and find someone more your speed.”
With that, the leader spins on her heels and storms from the room with her two minions trailing after her. I feel like crying but I won’t give them the satisfaction. I hate to admit that I had gotten my hopes up that Ryker might actually like me. What if he just feels sorry for me and how alone I am? I wipe a lone tear from my cheek before I gather up my bag and head for the door.
As soon as I walk out the door, I see Ryker leaning against the wall next to it. As soon as he sees me, he straightens and smiles down at me. His smile drops though when he gets a good look at my face and I know that my eyes must be red from holding back tears.
“What’s wrong? What happened?” He asks, immediately on guard.
“Just some girls being bitches.” I say as I look down at my shoes.
“Who? What did they say?” He asks.
“Just some girl, I don’t know her name. She said that you were just hanging out with me because you felt bad for me.” I still can’t seem to look up at his face.
“That’s bullshit.” My head pops up at the venom in his voice.
“I’m into you, Auden. A lot.”
I feel the blush heat my cheeks at his statement.
“I like you a lot too.” I say as I smile up at him. He smiles back at me as he wraps his arm around my waist and leads me down the hall to my next class.
That’s how my day goes. Ryker is waiting for me outside class every time and he walks me to all of my classes. We sit together at lunch with our thighs touching and I think this might be the best day of my life.
We walk to our last class, study hall, together and take our seats at the same table as yesterday. He sits next to me again and he talks to me as I finish my homework for the day. He walks me to my locker again and then out to his car, where once again he holds the door open for me and helps me into his car.
Over the next couple of weeks, this becomes our new routine, until one Friday two weeks later. Ryker picks me up but as we’re driving to school, he reaches over and picks up my hand, interlacing his fingers with mine. We’ve been taking things slow between us. Just a few hugs here and there or him wrapping his arm around my waist when we’re walking to class. Holding his hand now just feels natural though. I like how his fingers feel in between mine and how warm and soft his hand feels against mine.