I Don't Need You

In Which We Have the 1st Meeting *edited*

~Raely~

I stepped up onto the bus. It was still almost empty; the usual din of teenagers gossiping and joking around was absent, as mine was the first stop. I silently thanked the heavens for this. Easier to find a seat by myself this way. The choice of where to sit was deceptively simple. Sitting too close to the back was borrowing trouble--the druggies/troublemakers sat there--and the front was for freshmen and nerds. While I was a senior, I knew people would assume I was younger due to my lack of height. It didn't help that most of the students had never met me.

My parents had forced me to do online school for the past three and a half years. They were scared of the coronavirus, a valid fear, but they took it too far. A vaccine had come out when I was a junior, but, despite all my begging, I was still forbidden from attending the school at that time. Sighing, I took a seat near the middle of the bus. I supposed I should count my blessings. At least this year, I could attend.

The bus approached the next stop, not far down the road. I took out a novel and shoved my cheap earbuds into my ears. I hoped the gesture would make it abundantly clear that I didn't want to be disturbed.

Today was not my lucky day, though. Notwithstanding my efforts, I could hear the tell-tale shifting noises of someone sitting down beside me on the bench. Hopefully, this person wouldn't make any attempts at conversation. I doubted that, given anyone who didn't want a conversation could have sat in an unoccupied seat, but some people are just weird. You never knew.

"Hi, I'm Kota."

I rolled my eyes before turning towards the speaker. Too much to ask for a quiet ride, I supposed. "I'm Raely," I responded, looking Kota up and down. He was cuter than I'd expected. His green eyes were all the more attractive framed in his black wire glasses. The hair surrounding his smooth, pale face was brown and soft-looking, and I had the unexplainable urge to run my hands through it.

~Kota~

I hadn't wanted to get on the bus that morning. Unfortunately, my car wouldn't start. My precise plan for the first day of school was already ruined; my attitude turned foul. As soon as I got on the bus, my mood did a complete one-eighty; my wolf perked up as he identified a particular scent. A sweet, enticing hint of apple, vanilla, and just a tad of cinnamon wafted from a seat near the middle of the bus. "Beloved," my wolf told me, but it wasn't necessary. I already knew. Nothing and no one but my mate could have a scent so alluring, so desirable.

I sat down beside the source of the appeal. She faced the window as she read a book. Her chestnut hair hung down to the small of her back, tucked behind one ear. In that ear, one earbud was visible. It became clear to me that my mate--no, not just mine, I recalled to himself quickly--was a human. Had she been a werewolf, she would have recognized my smell instantly and spun towards me. This made things trickier.

"Hi, I'm Kota," I introduced myself to the girl. As she pivoted towards me, I noticed the difference between our heights. I wasn't the tallest of my brothers, but I had several inches on her, even seated. The second element that stood out to me was her eyes. Within those orbs, I saw universes. Each speck of gold among the swirling greens, grays, and blues was a world of its own. I tore his own eyes away from hers, hesitant to sink into their depths for fear I might drown in the mysteries I encountered there. She wore a gray hoodie and jeans with holes in them, not the sort of rips that were a style statement but the kind that meant she had had these pants for some time. I couldn't see her feet as they were tucked under the seat, but based on her nondescript clothing, I suspected she wore sneakers. Gabe is going to throw a fit...

"I'm Raely."

~Raely~

His hotness was very confusing. Why on earth was he talking to me? Was it some sort of prank? I hoped not.

"Are you a freshman? I haven't seen you before," the guy (Kota?) said. Great, he thought I was a freshman. Ugh. The thought saddened me, and I realized I cared a lot about his opinion of me, despite not knowing him.

"Actually, I'm a senior," I told him. "I've been a student at Ashley Walters for all of high school."

His eyes were full of confusion. "So have I. How could we never meet?"

I felt the urge to tease him, so I taunted, "I guess you just never noticed me."

Instantly, he responded, "I would have remembered you." My heart fluttered a bit at the thought that he might be flirting. Or maybe Kota meant that I was super ugly and therefore memorable? I reminded myself that it didn't matter. I had a boyfriend, I wasn't on the market anyway. Ben was pretty much perfect. I had no right to be interested in any other guy.

"Well, I know why you didn't see me. While technically I belonged to this school... I did all my lessons online. My parents were concerned about COVID-19."

His visible confusion lessened but didn't dissipate altogether. "The pandemic was considered over a year and a half ago." It was a statement, but I could read the question within it. It was a query I, too, would like answered.

"My mother and father are cautious." Cautious wasn't the word I wanted to use, but I wasn't about to spill details to some dude on the bus. Luckily, Kota seemed to realize this was an uncomfortable topic for me and dropped the matter entirely.

"Would you like me to show you around the school today? It can be confusing to people who haven't been here before."

I found the offer incredibly tempting. The thought of spending more time with the cute guy sitting beside me filled me with happy anticipation. Then I remembered... I had already arranged a tour with my friends and Ben. I really shouldn't be forgetting Ben at the first sight of someone remotely good-looking. Sighing internally at the loss of an opportunity to get to know Kota, I gave him my reluctant refusal. "I have some friends who will take me around the school. Your offer was sweet, though."