Not my world - Xaden Riorson reader

Workout buddy?

I stand still and take in the environment. Some people wear nice black uniforms, and others have flight jackets, which adds to the effect. But one man stands out among the rest. He is a full head taller than the men around them. He will probably be two heads above mine. His back is facing me, but I can see his blonde hair. It is cut shorter on the back and the sides but seems left flowing on the top. I am staring at him and taking in his everything. I stare at him briefly when he turns and makes eye contact. His lip turns up into a slight smile. I immediately turn around, embarrassed for being caught. My face and ears feel so hot.
. I try to get through the crowd, but it's too crowded to get far.

"Hey, is there something on my back?" I hear a man's voice behind me. As I turn, I look up to see the blonde man before me.

My mouth doesn't move to answer; I am just staring at the face before me. He has slightly tanned skin and the brightest blue eyes. He has a beautiful Roman nose and jawline. He has a gorgeous smile and dimples.

"Okay, I can't have something on my face, too." How can he possibly be making jokes? I can't handle this.

"No, no, you look fine. Not fine! Great. Great, you look great." I am so flustered, too flustered. I wish the earth or something would swallow me whole.

"Why, thanks. I think I look great, too." Fuck that smile. He has bright white teeth and dimples. I can't form words on my tongue, yet so many are running in my brain.

"Greens are my favourite colour, too."  "Huh." Yes, green is my favourite colour, but how could he possibly know that? My eyes are wide, and I feel so small. It feels like I'm under an examination.

"It's just your pants. They are green, and you stand out since everyone else is in black. But definitely in a good way." Sending me a wink. My face and ears remain hot.

"My name is Liam. What's yours?" This man is holding up this entire conversation on his back, and he does not seem to mind. That showers me with a bit of comfort.

"Y/n. My name is y/n." I try to take normal breaths, but I do give him a small smile, which he likes.

"So why are you here? I don't see a tattoo." Shaking his head towards me in emphasis.

"I was just drawn here today. But I need to work out more." Matching his joking atmosphere.

"If you ever need help, I'm here."

"I just might have to." Which is true. I am not in shape enough to survive the beep test, let alone attend a war college. So, I will need to learn to work out. 'Oh shit, I can't work out with headphones on. Now that will be torture.' Liam is watching my face contour from a smile to worry.

"Do you think your roommates are gonna snore?" It takes me out of my train of thought completely

"What?"

"I am. I am not a soft sleeper, but I'll probably wake up if someone is loud."

"I hadn't thought of that, to be honest. Oh, you can see your friends if you like. You don't have to make small talk with me."

He shrugged. "If I didn't want to, I'd stop," Liam said if it was the only answer and smiled slightly, showing a shadow of a dimple.

"Can I be honest?" I ask him. He responds, nodding his head at me.

"I would just love to stand here and not talk, maybe just ignore each other's assistance a little. If that sounds like the worst, you are free to leave; it's not like I can keep you here." Moving my hand up my body and then down his to show what I meant.

"I like that plan." He spoke so soft and smooth as he just turned slightly behind me.

I take a deep breath and watch the crowd around me. Rhiannon and Violet are out of sight, but there are many marked ones—or maybe they are noticeable. I know there are only 108. It just seems like a lot of children are being punished for their parents fighting for others survival. I don't know about the rules of war; harming children as a 'reminder' shouldn't be an option.

My mind was taken away from the runaway train when I heard a yell from a woman behind me. Liam turns around and puts himself entirely in front of me. My body turned around, and I moved my head to see Rhiannon and Violet. A breath is released from the chokehold of my lungs. I start moving away from Liam and tap his bicep, causing him to turn to face me.

"I'll see you again?" I tilt my head, hoping he will say yes.
"Yeah, someone has to hope you'll survive." As soon as he finishes, I turn and walk to the three women. I was right; it was Tara. She is beautifully brutal, with sharp feminine features and dark hair. She is talking very enthusiastically about her childhood love of dragons with Rhiannon. I am happy they are so excited and would love to have a green and red dragon, respectively. But I prefer to live in my brain for right now and give a slight head movement and smile now and again.

Another bell rings, and another, the bells I will hopefully hear for three more years. The last people are funnelling in from the parapet. Xaden seems to be with them. I can tell because the other riders move around him like a lone Lion surrounded by a herd of zebra. They seem to keep note of where he is and modify where they are for him. I haven't ever met someone who oozes authority and confidence, but Xaden breathes it in. It is not just the rookies who move; the third year flies out of the way from him, yet their eyes stay on him like magnets. He marches up to the dais with the other authority figures. There are ten of them, and Violet says, "I think they are about to start." 

They turned to face them, and I couldn't remove my eyes if I wanted to. Xaden is my dantura, so beautiful but will baffle me to no end.

"Three hundred and two of you have survived the parapet to become cadets today." He drips control, has a diplomatic grin, and gestures to us. "Well done, Sixty-seven did not."

My mouth tries to open, but everything about me is too tense. Why do people want to be a rider this bad? Hopefully, if I die, I just go back to earth. Or maybe I can find my way back because I will be trampled like a flower.

"I've heard this is just a stepping stone for him." Tara whispers, "I heard he wants Sorrengail's job, then General Melgrens."

"Well, I'm sure a lot of the professors just like his job since they can actually retire," I spoke softly to no one in particular. Tara looked at me in agreement.

"He is never getting his job," Violet mutters.

"Welcome to the rider's quadrant." His hands fly out from his side with as much of a warm welcome as he can muster. People cheer and start clapping.

Violet continues to speak, "Melgren's dragon gives him the signet ability to see a battle's outcome before it happens. There is no beating that, and you can't be assassinated if you know it is coming."  a matter of fact in her tone.

"As the codex says, you will begin the true crucible!" His voice carries over the five hundredish people standing before him. "You will be tested by your superiors, hunted by your peers, and guided by your instincts. Hopefully, they will keep you alive. If you make it to the threshing and are chosen you will be riders. Then we will see how many of you will be graduating." He seems to be getting joy out of the thought of a majority of people here dying.

"I am now going to introduce one toyour wing leaders." As he motions to Xaden and two other people.