Haven

I looked around hurriedly.

Where did he go? Was that the stranger from Friday? I guess that would explain the bruise on his hand. But if that was him, why didn't he stop to talk to me or explain?

I was left with so many questions and not a single answer. But at least I knew that Blue Eyes went to this school. Or did he?

Either that, or he was a stalker and was following me around everywhere, accidentally bumping into me.

I opted for the first choice.

"Miss Gold, what do you think you're doing?" the principal called out to me from across the hallway.

I snapped out of my thoughts. I couldn't worry about this now - I had to get to class. The hallway was nearly empty, minus a few stragglers who were still trying to get their lockers open.

"I'm sorry!" I whispered as I ran away and made a beeline straight towards my calculus class.

A few seconds later, I was there.

Mr. Ryden was facing the whiteboard, writing down the lesson plan and assignment for the day. I quietly opened the door and snuck into class, hoping he wouldn't catch me.

My eyes scanned the room for Ari's face.

Uh-oh.

She was sitting in the farthest desk in the back of the class.

I waved to get her attention, and then motioned in a way that I hoped said: What happened to sitting in the front so you could 'stare at Mr. Ryden's ass'?

Sorry, she mouthed sheepishly while shrugging her shoulders, as if she was helpless.

I rolled my eyes and walked towards her, praying the teacher hadn't noticed me.

"Haven, Haven, Haven. Nice of you to finally join us," Mr. Ryden broadcasted without even turning around.

Well, shoot.

So much for sneaking in. And how did he know my name on the first day of class?

I sighed. I was not making a good impression for my first day in this class.

"Take a seat," he said, narrowing his eyes at me and pointing to the open desk next to Ari.

I could feel all thirty-two pairs of eyes on me as I ducked my head and speed-walked to the back of the room. I took deep breaths to prevent myself from turning into a tomato, but it didn't help. I hated being the center of attention, and my bright red ears probably revealed that.

After what felt like an eternity and a half, I sat down and Mr. Ryden cleared his throat.

"As I was saying, g(x) is the antiderivative of f(x). If g(5) is 18, then what is g(1)?"

All of the students looked around at each other or down at their papers, trying not to make eye contact with Mr. Ryden.

"Haven? Do you know the answer?"

I looked up hesitantly, staring at the equation on the board and trying to figure it out.

How did Mr. Ryden expect me to figure out what g(1) was when I couldn't even figure out who Blue Eyes was?

"Nope."

I felt my face getting hot again as I looked down. I took out a piece of scratch paper and my calculator, and I tried to complete the assignment. But I couldn't.

I couldn't focus.

My entire being was trapped in those blue eyes. In Blue Eyes.

If he went to this school, why didn't I remember ever seeing him before?

How could someone I barely knew consume my entire being so wholeheartedly? How could I be so obsessed with someone whose name I didn't even know?

This must be what fan girls feel like at a One Direction concert.

A few minutes later, Ari nudged me out of my thoughts and pointed to the corner of my desk where a note with her neat handwriting was.

The note read, what happened?

I think I met the stranger from Friday night, I wrote. I drew a pair of blue eyes on the note and handed it back to Ari. She looked at me, wiggling her eyebrows and making kissy faces.

GIVE ME THE DEETS!

Suddenly, a hand snatched the note from my hand.

"Perhaps you'd like to stay after class to have a chat with me, Miss Haven," Mr. Ryden said, smoldering me with his intense gaze and crumbling up the note in his hands.

"Mmm," I grunted and nodded slightly, embarrassed once again. My face was starting to turn a permanent shade of pink.

Pretty soon, the piercing bell rang to signal the end of class. Everyone but me got up to leave.

"Looks like Mr. Sexy wants some private time with you. Hot makeout sesh, maybe?" Ari pushed me playfully as she got up from her desk.

I nudged her back while laughing. "You're sick, Tuna," I retorted. "It's your fault I got into trouble!"

"But you still love me, right?" she winked.

"No."

"Shut up," she said with a laugh. "Do you want me to wait for you?" she added, stopping in front of the door.

"No, it's okay. Go find your next class. I'll see you at lunch?"

"Of course. You still have to tell me what happened this morning," she reminded. "Have a nice day, my Haven ho! Give Mr. Ryden a kiss for me," she added as she left, tossing her hair over her shoulder. She turned the corner and I lost her in the sea of students in the hallway.

After the last student left the class, Mr. Ryden walked over to my desk and sat beside me. For a few seconds, neither of us said a word. I took that time to give him a quick once-over with my eyes.

He was wearing a dark green sweater, the same shade as his eyes, over a white dress shirt; it created a nice contrast of colors. He had tucked his black and white checkered tie under his sweater so it created a bulge down the middle of his chest. Other than that, his clothes were crisp and looked freshly ironed. His glasses were perched on the middle of the bridge of his nose and his dark, brown eyes were shining brightly. His full-bodied lips looked a little glossy, almost like he had put Vaseline on it. Although he looked to be in his early to mid-forties, I could see why students thought he was good-looking.

"So..." I started, trying to break the tension. "Why did you want to see me?"

"It seems as though you were a bit distracted today," he noted while staring at me over his black, wire-rimmed glasses. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, thank you. I just have a lot going on lately."

"It's only the first day of school, Haven."

"I know, sorry. I'll pay more attention next class," I promised, holding up my pinky finger in the air to show how serious I was.

He nodded his head, but said nothing.

We sat in awkward silence, waiting for the other to say something else. The bell rang again, and second period started.

He must have a free period this time, I thought.

Mr. Ryden cleared his throat. "Well, okay then. Uh... Just know that I'm here if you need to talk about anything," he concluded. "If you have any problems going on at home or at school, let me know and we can work something out."

"Alright, well thanks." I gave him a small smile as I got up to leave.

"Wait, Haven-" he started to say.

I looked at him, waiting expectantly for him to say something.

"Never mind," he finished hesitantly. He shook his head to himself. "Here's your excused note for second period so your teacher doesn't mark you as tardy."

"Thank you."

And once again, I was alone in the hallway.

I made my way to my locker to drop off my calculus book. I rubbed my arms, wondering why I was so weak. Even carrying just one textbook was starting to take its toll on my poor, little, scrawny arms.

Ari was right. I should go to the gym.

Just as I was about to close my locker and turn away, a folded piece of paper fell out. Scribbled on the inside in tiny, neat handwriting were the words:

Haven,
Meet me after school near the bleachers. I'll be waiting.

Instinctively, my head shot up as I scanned the halls for Blue Eyes. But I was alone.

A few hours later, I made my way to Ari, who was sitting at one of the lunch tables in the crowded cafeteria.

"Girl, I have major news," she exclaimed as I approached her. "I heard some juicy things about some of the hottest guys at the school. Soon, they'll be ours!"

I laughed. "What is with your obsession with boys? You're crazy."

"I know," she replied, nodding her head in agreement. "I have so much to tell you. But first, tell me what happened this morning!"

"I saw him, Ari. The stranger from Friday."

"What? When? How? What did he look like? Speak, woman!"

"Relax, Tuna. Breathe," I advised. She looked like she was going to hyperventilate, and I didn't want her to faint on me.

"Tell me!"

"He was... gorgeous." I exhaled. "And he had the most amazing blue eyes. I ran into him, literally, when I stopped by my locker this morning."

"Damn," she fumed.

After I finished recounting the details of my meeting with Blue Eyes and the note that was in my locker, she let out a huge air of breath. "I should've gone with you!"

"You went to class instead, remember? To get a front-view seat of Mr. Ryden's butt. Which, honestly, isn't even that great."

"I wouldn't know," she said bitterly. "All the hoes were already crowded in the front, fighting over the best seats. That's why I was sitting in the back."

"Thanks for that, by the way," I replied while rolling my eyes.

"You're welcome. Anyways, by the faraway look you had in your eyes a few seconds ago, Blue Eyes must've been one hell of a guy. I should have been there!" she repeated.

"He was. You know that feeling when you see someone and your heart just skips a beat?"

"Yeah. That's called arrhythmia, bitch. You can die from that shit."

I slapped her playfully. "Language! Anyways, you know what I mean."

Suddenly, I saw him.

Blue Eyes.

He was standing across the cafeteria, casually leaning against the wall. His hands were in his pockets and his foot was up on the wall behind him, supporting him. Priscilla was standing in front of him, and by the way she was twirling her fake blonde hair around with her fingers, I could tell she was flirting.

Ari followed my gaze.

"Mercy me, cut me a slice of that pie," she whistled. "That's the new kid. His name is Reeve."

Reeve. That explained the "R" on his shoe. There was something else about him that seemed familiar to me, but I couldn't place it.

Suddenly, as if he knew we were talking about him, Reeve looked up and caught my eye. He winked.

Blushing, I looked down.

"Holy cow, Haven! Is that the guy from this morning?!" she practically screamed, her eyes bulging out of their sockets.

"Yeah."

"He's bad news, Haven. As much as I'd like to undress him with my eyes, I heard it was best to stay away from him."

"Why?"

"He was held back twice. He's 19, but he's still a senior in high school. He's a bad boy."

"My new favorite kind of boy," I grinned as I bit my lower lip.

"I'm serious, Haven. I heard bad things about him. His reputation isn't so hot, and it's only his first day here. And also, he looks like he chases them big booty hoes."

Someone cleared their throat, and Ari and I looked up.

"I see you're eyeing my guy," Priscilla said, amused, as she walked closer to our table.

"Your guy?" I asked, raising my eyebrow.

"He's mine," she warned. "And I'm definitely not going to share him with you cows."

"You're so childish," I asserted, rolling my eyes and waving her away.

"We would ask you how old you are, but we know you can't count that high," Ari finished. "Now go away, Prissy. We were looking at something a lot better than you."

Priscilla scoffed as she walked away. "Stay away from him," she warned again in a venomous voice as she looked at us over her shoulder.

I risked a peek to where Reeve was standing a few minutes ago, but just like before, he was gone.

"I swear, that boy is a ninja," I mumbled, feeling dejected.

"You think he's the one who left the note?" Ari asked.

"I guess I'll find out soon."

"Just remember, Haven," Ari warned while shaking her finger at me. "He's bad news."

But I didn't care.