The Boy and His Guitar

I could kill right now.

It’s not even an exaggeration. My dear brother Cameron had gotten it into his stupid little head that it would be fun to wake me up... at 4:30 in the morning, three hours before school starts. My day had officially been ruined before it even began.

The car ride to school wasn’t any better. If girls’ talk more than guys, there must be a mistake, Cam would then be a girl… a big one. I swear he would talk until my ears fell off and then he would continue talking. Something about my brother and silence didn’t seem to bode well this morning much to my displeasure.

Getting our schedules was hell as well. Not only was it our first day, but everyone else’s as well. We had fought through the crowd of crazy, hormonal teenagers to get our welcoming packets for new students. Coincidentally, the map of the school was completely backwards. As the sweet looking secretary behind the desk tried to explain this to Cam and I we became more confused finally leaving in defeat.

It didn’t help that everyone was staring at me as I walked through the unfamiliar hallways. I get it, I’m new, but that didn’t give people the right to be rude. Cam on the other hand basked in the glory of being looked at. He walked a few paces behind me soaking in all the attention, especially the overly long glances from the girls.

“Aurelie!” I heard a very distinct voice. I walked towards it trying to loose my pompous brother in the process.

“Ryder, glad to see you,” I said in relief as I started to notice everyone begin to look at me again. This time though, I don’t think it was entirely me, just my company.

Ryder wore a simple charcoal V-neck with extremely dark wash jeans. Knowing Ryder, he probably wasn’t one to put much thought into his appearance. Luckily, he would probably be adored by girls regardless of what he was wearing, including a lack of clothes.

“Ignore them, they’re all daft,” He said as he surveyed the crowded hallway, “As soon as Fox graces us mere mortals with his presence all eyes will be off of you. I can assure you of that.”

A little chime went off and his hand flew into his pocket revealing a sleek phone, “I hate mobiles. Always making unnecessary sounds.”

Suddenly Ryder’s phone was out of his hands. Ryder looked up at me quickly before running after the figure making their way down the hall, “Wait! Ms. A! I was turning it off! I swear!”

I watched the humorous scene until they were out of sight. That’s when I noticed it had gotten increasingly quiet in the hallway. Where it had once been noisy, you could hear the sound of a pen drop. Students seemed to line the lockers on either side of the hallway. Unsurprisingly, the figure making his way slowly through the crowd wore a signature scowl.

“Where’s Ryder? He said he’d be here,” Fox stopped next to me ignoring all the sets of eyes firmly glued to him.

Fox looked out of place. Ryder had been right when he said things would be different when Fox came around. It was unbelievable to think that the simple presence of a teenage boy could change the atmosphere so drastically. Fox Renard was a name known to every person in this school.

“He got busted for using his phone,” I told him observing his appearance. Fox’s hair was disheveled, like he rolled right out of bed and didn’t even bother to comb it. None of the buttons on his Henley were done and it looked like he had simply pulled on a pair of jeans. His shoes weren’t even tied properly and he sill managed to look like a god.

“Figures the idiot would get himself caught on the first day. I’m surprised he even knows how to turn the damn thing on without starting a fire,” Normally when someone says something like that you wouldd think they were joking, but looking in Fox’s eyes it was evident that he was completely serious.

He pushed his hands deep into his pockets and leaned back against the wall behind him. Fox looked so comfortable in his surrounding, I was almost envious of him just by looking. His eyes were partway closed that someone could almost mistake him for sleeping. I almost believed he’d dozed off until he opened his mouth, “Don’t people in this school know staring is improper?”

I instantly averted my eyes looking anywhere but his beautiful face. I wrung my hands together nervously thinking of something to say, anything that would make this whole situation seem a little less awkward.

I was about to turn back and make a comment when I was interrupted, “Hi!”

I turned to look at the girl the voice came from and took in her appearance. She had blonde hair a shade or two darker than mine and green eyes that could almost compete with Colton’s. From what I could gather she seemed friendly… maybe a little too friendly. Her obviously cheerful attitude had caught me off guard. I snuck a glance at Fox who hadn’t bothered opening his eyes, likewise, the girl didn’t seem to take any notice to the Adonis standing several feet away from her.

“You must be new, I’m Audrey! Welcome!” Her smile seemed to reach her eyes making her glow. Maybe Audrey was just a happy person in general…

A bell rang and kids started to clear out of the hallways, “I’m so glad I got a chance to introduce myself. If you need anything, be sure to let me know, okay? All right! Hope we have some classes together, see you later!”

She ran off before I was able to blink.

“You’ve got to watch out for yourself.” I had totally forgotten Fox was still even here, “People are always out to get you, whether they know you or not. It’s all a petty façade.”

Fox walked away without even sparing me a single glance. His body moved gracefully down the hall and once he was gone from sight I realized I was alone. He had left me to ponder by myself in an empty hallway. What had he been talking about? Fox Renard, what a strange boy…

Well, whatever it was, I fully intended to find out.