The New Guy

It was like the entire female student body cried out in collective horror. The news that Sean was dating came as a mental blow to a lot of girls. Even the ones that had zero chance of attracting his attention seemed to take the news poorly. Sean pretty much went cold turkey too. I didn’t have the details since I no longer sat with Kaylee at lunch, but Sarah never struck me as a possessive type. From what little I managed to get from Kaylee, it was Sean who was pushing other girls away. It was like everyone ceased to exist but the quiet blond. Whether that would last was up in the air, but the two seemed happy whenever I saw them in the hall. The fact that Sarah was talking to him was weird to see considering how little I ever saw her talk. They seemed happy enough, which made me feel better about my involvement. At least something good came out of it, even if I hadn’t done much.

A week passed, and it was starting to sink in that maybe Sean was going to be off the market for good. As interesting as it was, I was far more interested in the Ally, Sam, and Liam situation. Maybe it was wishful thinking on my part, but I think things were warming up between the three. Liam was a fount of positivity ever since we started sitting with them. Even if he wasn’t sure where their relationship was going or where he stood, their friendship was there. Hopefully, it turned out well for him. While I wished there was more I could do for him to help out, I didn’t know how to help and thought it best to avoid getting involved. I had a habit of making a mess of things I stuck my nose into. I also got the added benefit of becoming friends with the two as well. Shared interests and hobbies tended to do that. While I didn’t have Liam’s romantic interest in the two, it was nice to have a larger friend base—especially since none of the girls Kaylee hung out with were anywhere close to being someone I considered a friend.

Dumping my unneeded books into my locker, I switched out ones I needed for homework later tonight. Kaylee wasn’t here yet, which was a bit odd. I was running a bit behind since I had questions to ask Ms. Newman so she should have beat me here. Closing my locker, I turned to go search for her when I nearly bowled her over.

“There you are,” I said with a smile.

“Ah, sorry,” she said nervously. “I was… uh…” Seeing the way she was avoiding my eye, I was instantly on guard. That was when I noticed she wasn’t alone. Standing beside her was someone I’d never met before. He had a charming smile as he extended his hand.

“Name’s Charles,” he said with a smooth, rich voice.

“Charles,” I repeated slowly as I realized what this was. After almost two weeks, Kaylee was picking her first partner. While this wasn’t unexpected, her pick was. Charles was not her normal type. He was certainly handsome, but he had the air of education and sophistication about him. He held himself with a suave charm. The male version of Jamie Bond. It was hard to tell, but his body type wasn’t the athletic or muscular type she usually went for, leaning more towards the thin and reedy.

“I’m Scott.” I took his hand, giving it a firm shake. His dark skin was a sharp contrast to mine. My eyes moved over to Kaylee, giving her a subtle raise of an eyebrow. She shrugged and I turned my attention back to Charles.

“So…” I said, releasing his hand. This was so damn awkward. “How do you two know each other?”

“We are in government together,” Kaylee answered.

“The teacher assigned us in a group. Next two weeks, I’ll be seeing a lot of Kaylee.” Glancing over at Kaylee, I saw her looking up at the man. There was a hungry look in her eye as she bit her lower lip. It made me wonder if he worded that on purpose. My stomach did a small flip. He would certainly be seeing a lot of her. When Charles turned to face Kaylee, her face instantly shifted to a smile. “See you after practice then?” She nodded and he gave me another look. “It was nice to meet you, Scott.”

“Likewise,” I replied. My eyes fell on Kaylee as she watched him walk away.

Butterflies in my stomach, I tried to force myself to be calm. “Meeting after practice?”

She jerked as if remembering I was there. Turning, she faced me. She looked guilty, fidgeting in place. “Doing some project work at my house.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Really. We are.”

“And after that?” Her silence was all I needed to know. “Does he know about your extra-curricular plans?”

“Yes.” Her hands found mine, squeezing them. “You okay with this?”

I let out a breath. “It’s what we agreed.”

She didn’t push, giving me a nod instead. Standing on her toes, she kissed me. “I love you.”

I answered automatically, repeating it back to her. Smiling, she brushed a hand through her hair. “You uh… Have a ride home?”

“I can find one.”

“If you can’t, I can drop you off after practice.”

“It’s fine. I’ll figure something out.”

“Okay. Let me know if you can’t.”

With another squeeze of my hand and a dazzling smile, Kaylee backed away before spinning and heading off towards the gym. Taking a deep breath, I released it slowly as I watched her walk away. The honeymoon phase of our relationship was finally coming to an end.

Damn.