Unleashed

Pebbles

Orientation took about a few hours and before we knew it we were all told to go find our classes so we wouldn’t be lost on our official day back tomorrow.

“What’s your schedule?” ask Ashton as he came up falling into step on my left.

“Geometry, A.P English, Art, and Music appreciation.” Looking up from my paper I ask, “What about you?”

“A.P English, Music, Geometry, and Swimming.” He says.

“Math before swimming? I thought you didn’t like having to deal with numbers before you practice.” I smiled.

“I don’t, but the lady up front says for me to ignore it for today, that I can switch my classes tomorrow. When did you say you have Geometry?”

“First period.”

Running a hand through his hair he smiles, “Looks like I know what I’m switching to.”

“Looks that way.”  I say smiling.

Walking out of the auditorium a few of Ashton’s friends came up talking about their swim meet that they attended over the weekend. Standing there I went over my class list once more, when a strange sense of warmth crept at the back of my neck. I absently rubbed it as I began to look around. The halls were filled with kids trying to find their way to their classes.

First days were always chaos; no one knew where to go so it was like they were lost in the woods with no sense of direction. Glancing around one last time I went to look back at my student list when I stopped. Standing there down the hall stood the kid from this morning. He stood with his back leaning against the locker, his hands shoved into his pocket as he stood listening to whatever the girls in front of him were saying. He didn’t seem really intrigued with what the girls were saying as he looks up. Glancing up my direction his eyes scanned the crowd briefly before his eyes met mine as he smiled. Not a sweet and innocent smile. No, something about his smile was something sinister, something that screamed he wasn’t the type of boy to bring home to meet your mother, but I wasn’t for sure. Most bad guys didn't come across freaky and frightening, hiding in shadowed corners with insane grins plastered across their faces. Most bad guys were your normal, everyday guys moving through life like anyone else. Going to school. Going to work. Going to church, even. They were hard to spot, and that's what made them so good at being bad.

“Who is that?” I ask Charlotte as she steps up to my side.

“So I see you’ve spotted our new exchange student.” Says Charlotte.

“Exchange student?” I asked.

Charlotte nods, “I hear his name is Harry. Jenny says that he just transferred from somewhere in England I believe.”

“What year is he?” I asked.

“Same as us, 3rd, he’s a junior.”

I nodded as Charlotte says, “Don’t go down that road.”

“Go down what road?”

“The road of wanting to find him out? Jenny says he’s nothing, but trouble. That he was transferred out here because he got into so much shit back in the U.K. The boy oozes trouble as if he was producing sweat.”

“Are you seriously going to feed into the rumors? It’ not even the first day.”

“Hell yeah I’m going to feed into the rumors! The boy has a track record and wherever trouble goes, it seems to follow him.” turning towards me she says, “Just stay away from him Anna.”

Charlotte was never the person who believed in much of the rumors, so with her getting this emotionally attached to the subject I nodded.

“Okay I’ll stay away from him.”