Ruedelia's Repose

S E V E N

"Hey." I closed my locker and turned to find Silas leaning on the locker next to mine with an easy smile on his face. I waved, adjusting the straps of my book bag. "Hey.", I returned, my voice quiet but easily picked up on, even in the bustling halls of our school.

"Can I walk you to class?"

I shot Silas a funny look, but nodded nonetheless. "I thought you didn't trust me?", I asked, and he smirked. "The hallways are full of people.", he pointed out, gesturing to all the students hurrying to their next classes.

"Ah.", I said animatedly, "You don't trust being alone with me."

Silas tilted his head as he watched me, a frown beginning to mar the once unwrinkled skin of his forehead. "What?", I wondered, and the boy shifted his bag on his shoulders before he spoke.

"I didn't realize you'd put so much weight on what I said at Grace's.", he admitted, scratching nervously at the back of his head. The dark hair fluffing up in the back due to his fingers carelessly combing through it, but he didn't seem to mind.

I huffed out a laugh, coming to a stop in front of my class, and Silas halted in front of me. If I listened hard enough, the gossipy student whispers were very easy to pick up on. I shook my head. "It's just weird to me that someone with, seemingly, so little problems has trust issues.", I explained.

Silas narrowed his eyes at me, and I couldn't help but feel a little flustered at the annoyed expression.

The deep metallic color of his eyes was arresting and hard to look away from, but when paired with the brooding nature of his gaze, the strong shape of his nose, his high cheekbones, sharp jaw, and pouty lips, Silas was a sight for sore eyes, and the fact that I was highly attracted to him didn't make being in his presence any easier.

I fought the gut urge to take a step back and lower my gaze as Silas stood at his full height. He towered over me and everyone else in the hall, his head held high. "It's just a precautionary measure, Rue.", he said before adding, "Beautiful girls are often the ones who cause the most problems."

I scowled. "That was a little asshole-ish. Don't you think?", I asked, and he nodded in agreement.

"I never claimed to be a saint.", he replied, and with that, he left me standing where I was and disappeared around the corner. I rolled my eyes up to the ceiling and slowly trekked to my seat in the back corner of the classroom by the windows where I dropped my bag at my feet.

Turning to look outside, I thought of Silas and the new piece of himself he'd revealed.

It was interesting, and not at all what I'd expected from him. He was normally calm and quiet, but maybe I only thought that because I didn't know him well. Apparently I had severely underestimated Silas's personality and behavioral traits, but that just made me more excited to familiarize myself with him. There was so much I didn't know, and now I was more eager to learn.

It was like finally opening a present you'd forgotten you had after three years.

"Alright class!", Mrs. Heffler called out, clapping her hands a few times as she walked over to her desk.

She was a Spanish woman with a black, shoulder length bob, rounded features, and a temper, but she was one of my favorite instructors regardless of the fact that she taught my least favorite subject this semester: anatomy.

It wasn't that I struggled in the class, I just didn't like the material.

"Get out a couple sheets of paper, we aren't doing much today. Just this bellringer—", she pointed to the white board, "—some notes to add on to the ones you took yesterday, and your test.", she listed out.