Legacy Mutation (Book Eight)

Chapter 4: Possible Friends

Creds to -Renci- for Nixie and Kelly <3

Dean walks to his locker beside Copeland. The look to their lock combos, struggling as they try to open them. Soon, Dakota and Asher walk over, having already mastered the lock.

"Spin right, spin left, spin right again," Dakota demonstrates.

Dean's locker pops open, and he grins. "Oh. Thanks Kota."

"No problem."

Asher opens Copeland's locker, and she smirks. "Thanks nerd boy."

He rolls his eyes and gives her a gentle shove, heading back to his locker with his sister.

"Dudes! This is awesome!" Mitch grins. "This place is amazing!"

The cousins laugh.

Suddenly, a girl behind Dean trips, her books and binders flying into the air. A few people nearby laugh and point at her. She keeps her head down, her ponytail falling across her face as she scrambles to retrieve her fallen items. Dean immediately stoops down to help her. He knows this moment seems incredibly cliche, but he does want to help the poor girl.

"Here," he says kindly, handing her one of her many novels.

"Oh...thanks," she mumbles, taking the book. "Sorry. I'm really clumsy."

She looks up, blushing a little with embarrassment. Freckles dot her nose and cheeks lightly, and her eyes are a coffee brown. Her hair is the same colour and is pulled into a flowing side ponytail. Her figure is tall and slim, and Dean guesses she must be around 5'7".

Dean grabs her last binder, and she stands up, smoothing out her shirt and jeans.

"Sorry again," she says.

"It's no problem, really." He smiles. "I'm Dean."

She tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Elisabeth. Call me whatever nickname you want."

"What if I want to call you Elisabeth?"

"That'd be a first."

He laughs.

Copeland, having watched this whole exchange, winks at her cousin and heads down the hall with the others. Dean rolls his eyes, smiling lightly. He looks back at the girl he just helped, keeping the warm smile on his lips.

"I could help you out with these," he offers, adjusting his grip on the few of her supplies he's still holding. "If you're okay with it."

She lets out a nervous laugh. "Uh...sure. Thanks."

He follows her to her locker, handing her the items once she opens the door. He watches as she piles it all neatly into the locker, and he notices that she's wearing a Space Heroes shirt.

"You like SH?" he asks.

She looks down at her shirt, blushing again. "It's kind of a guilty pleasure. Not a lot of people watch those older cartoons anymore."

She seems to brace herself for something, and he tilts his head a little. "What?"

"Usually, this is when people laugh at me."

"Actually, Space Heroes is my favourite show. My parents love it too." He chuckles. "That's why my middle name is Ryan."

She laughs. "Your parents sound awesome."

"They are."

She smiles, looking down the hall. "There's a welcoming assembly. I can show you the way."