Me and You

Lead The Way

Sunday went by far too quickly, and with the end of the weekend, came Monday.

If anything, Zane was anxious to go to a school where a cream-coloured suit with a white tie is a mandatory uniform, surely his mother had to be playing jokes on him.

"Relax Z, nothing can go wrong if you have Riyalin by you." Leo said, dressed in his own cream-coloured suit, but unlike Zane, he had a lax smile.

"What does that even mean?" Zane asked, loosening his tie with a frustrated sigh.

Leo had decided to come over in the morning, with the excuse of Zane needing friends to come with him and sit through orientation with him.

"She has a strong reputation, you'll learn soon enough that you're a lucky guy." Leo responded simply, shouldering his bag.

Zane sighed, slipping his own bag on as they left the house, going in their separate cars.

The school was even bigger than Zane had expected, with white columns leading to the entryway, gardens well maintained, and gazebos scattered across the entire school.

Not to mention the lake by the rose bushes.

"You guys are beyond late." Ailani said, smirking as she looked at Leo with a playful glint in her eyes. Riyalin stood beside her in an identical cream-coloured dress, black tights and a white blazer.

"Riyalin, hi." She looked up, grey eyes softening as she looked at Zane with a small smile.

"Hi. How's Carlington so far?" She asked, slipping a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Good, I-"

Riyalin took hold of his tie and tightened it, shaking her head slightly as she leaned back against the column.

Zane felt the blood rush to his cheek, biting the inside of his cheek to stop himself from grinning, and he gave Riyalin a nod before rushing over to Leo.

He grabbed hold of Leo's arm and turned both of them around, backs facing the girls, and he grinned like a fool.

"What's going on with you, Z?" Leo asked, yet the knowing smile on him made it clear he knew exactly what went on.

"Nothing. I just need to-" Zane inhaled before turning around, both girls looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

Leo turned around and went to Riyalin and Ailani, casually slipping an arm around Ailani, resting his hand on her shoulder.

"I'm going to go on ahead, I have some things I need to settle." Riyalin said, pulling her tote bag higher on her shoulder, and she left with a tight smile.

As she walked away, Zane noticed the white scarf she used to tie her half up crown braid, standing out in her black hair.

"You are so whipped." Leo teased, snapping Zane out of his focus on Riyalin, only to notice Ailani grinning at him.

"Please. I am not whipped." Zane rolled his eyes, getting snort and laughter as response.

"I'm not."

"You definitely are."

Zane huffed, but a part of him agreed, not that he was whipped, but he did have feelings for the girl.

"What course are you taking?" Leo asked, and Zane sighed softly.

"Pure science." Leo raised an eyebrow but didn't ask anything else, leading him to one of the main halls.

Zane got comfortable at the aisle seat, with Leo on his right, and he looked to the front, where a man was speaking.

The teacher drawled on at the podium, and as he spoke, checklists were handed out by older students.

"Where's Riyalin? Is missing orientation even allowed?" Zane whispered, and Leo turned in his seat, pulling out his own checklist and handing one to Zane.

"You'll see soon enough rules don't really apply to her. No one would consider enforcing them on her, not if they valued their life." Leo replied, filling in his checklist with subjects with an absent-minded look.

They both got up as the students were dismissed, and as they approached the exit, Leo pulled Zane back a little, until Ailani came into view.

"Well, I'm off. I need to get to finance class, you, can go along with Ailani, she takes the same course as you." Leo gave a little wave and pushed Zane to Ailani, who just smiled and led Zane out.

"Alright then. Just follow me and we'll get today done with." Ailani said, shouldering her bag while filling in checklist, all whilst walking.

Zane followed quickly, and true enough, the classes passed by smoothly, and he found Biochemistry to be easier than expected.

Ailani took Zane out in her Lamborghini to a restaurant outside the campus, parking rather recklessly.

The two of them walked in, to see Riyalin leaning back into a couch, hands crossed while talking with Leo, a rather fierce expression to her as she spoke.

Ailani sat down, startling both of them, and almost immediately, the tension between them melted away, replaced by friendly conversation.

Zane followed, sitting on the couch beside Leo,  who smiled up at him.

"What did you get me?" Ailani asked the moment she settled into the couch.

"Seared blackfin tuna, since you've had a thing for that." Riyalin replied, satisfaction filling her as Ailani beamed.

"Certified best friend." Ailani smiled, blowing a kiss with a laugh.

"Sometimes I wonder how you two even became friends." Leo said with a small frown.

Ailani and Riyalin shared a look, before giving Leo an incredulous look.

Riyalin crossed her arms and gave Leo a stern look.

"Ailani fell in the snow during my fourth birthday party, and she wouldn't stop bawling, said the ice hurt. Everyone laughed at her and I pretty much forced them to leave for laughing." Riyalin rolled her eyes playfully, and Ailani wrapped a hand around Riyalin.

"And she's been in my corner ever since." Ailani concluded, just as plates were set down on the table.

Zane scoffed, and Riyalin averted her eyes to Zane, a smile he couldn't decipher as she looked at him.

They ate in silence, but it wasn't what people called awkward silence, rather, it was comforting.

Good food and good people.

After their meal, Riyalin and Ailani switched places, and as Ailani became wrapped up in their conversation, Riyalin leaned forward with a questioning look to Zane.

"Mind telling me why a scoff was necessary?" Her voice was enough for him to hear, without interrupting Leo and Ailani.

"You helping people is something I need to see first-hand." Riyalin pretended to be offended, placing a hand over her heart with a look of outrage.

She dropped it quickly, smirking as she agreed.

"If anything, I was a different girl then, eager to help. I've grown, it's different." Her smile was rueful, but Zane knew better than to pry.

Leo and Ailani stood up, but their two friends took no notice.

Leo cleared his throat, and they looked at him with a slight frown.

"We're going to the Iris, if you want to skip and come along, you're welcome." Riyalin grinned, already on her feet.

"Well? Aren't you coming?" In that moment, Zane knew he didn't have another option, not with those eyes pulling him in.

"Lead the way, Riyalin." She smiled and led him out, making him hitch a ride with her.