Basic Need

Ch 1: The New Guy

As usual, he was there with her, walking her all the way to school and then stopping at her locker before dragging her towards his.

“Good morning, Alice,” The brown-eyed, raven-haired girl trailing behind was greeted by none other than her best friend.

“Good morning,” replied Alice cheerfully while engulfing her in a hug.

“Damn, I missed you girl!” She exclaimed while – after freeing herself from the tight hug – patting her best friend’s head affectionately. She was quite tall, especially when compared to Alice. Standing at about five feet ten inches, she easily towered over her friend’s little five-feet-three-inches frame.

“You’ve been gone for the whole holidays, Alexandra, you meanie!” Alice whined, using her sweet baby voice.

“Come Alice, it’s the second day of senior year and I don’t want to be late.” Harry’s bored voice came from beside her, almost startling her. Alexandra’s answer died on her lips at that and her eyes turned slightly resentful. If only he could have kept quiet for a tad bit longer, she would have forgotten he was there altogether.

He had been silent during their exchange and that was to be expected since he didn’t particularly like Alexandra –truth be told, it was mutual; they couldn’t stand each other at all. They had tried to be friends for Alice’s sake but to no avail.

They were both very close friends to one sole person. They were therefore bound to come in contact with each other… They ended up agreeing on ignoring one another, for indifference seemed like the best way out of their predicament – it had to be better than continuous bickering.

Alice looked up at that face of his which almost seemed harshly cut – he was very manly, she had to admit – and saw the seriousness etched on his features. She nodded in consent, waved goodbye at Alexandra then hurried a little bit and joined him seeing as he had preceded her. It wasn’t hard to keep up with him since his strides weren’t too big. He made it so – so that she didn’t have to run after him.

Just as they settled down in their desks, the teacher strolled in, closely followed by someone; a new face at that.

The forty-something English teacher called for silence then introduced the transferred student in a bored voice that bordered on the I-just-want-to-be-done-with-this-already tone, “This is Kyle Austin, be nice to him.”

The guy nodded smilingly at his classmates in greeting then, upon being allowed to choose a seat by the teacher, took several steps forward – towards Alice?

She couldn’t say for sure and she seriously couldn’t believe it. The closer he got, the faster her heartbeat went. He was looking intently at her the whole time.

What’s with that stare? She thought mid-anxiously, mid-angrily; nervousness overtaking everything else as she started getting clamming hands.

A warm, familiar hand shot out from beside her and came to rest upon her fidgeting ones. Gradually, her heartbeat ceased its race and went back to its normal pace and she noticeably calmed down. All the while, she didn’t fail to notice that Harry’s hard gaze was set on the newcomer and she couldn’t help but internally sigh at that.

Said newcomer chose the vacant seat right next to hers and she did her best trying to ignore him and his curious stare. She could have sworn she felt his eyes on her, taking her in, caressing her figure. She shivered.

“Didn’t anybody tell you it’s rude to stare?” Came Harry’s hushed warning.

“I can’t help but stare at the beauty that is our classmate,” was his smooth reply. His eyes twinkled in amusement at her and she felt herself blush under his flirtatious gaze despite her trying not to.

She also felt Harry slightly, briefly squeezing her hand but it had been so fleeting she wondered if he even noticed it himself. Probably an unconscious gesture, she concluded, since, upon looking at him, she noticed him staring at the teacher.

As the bell finally rang, signaling the end of their first period, Alice all but shot out of her chair, making the English teacher narrow his eyes ever so slightly at her. She had never been a big fan of the subject. She actually would have been failing miserably in it if it weren’t for Harry’s help. The fact that the teacher could unexpectedly ask her about something and cause her a public disgrace of sorts was not a thought that made it easy for her to enjoy the class. On the contrary, there was nothing she felt but nervousness… and Kyle’s heated looks most definitely did not help.

Why he seemed so interested in her when he barely knew her was beyond her.

She willed herself to move her legs a little bit and stand over her best friend’s desk.

Harry looked up at her from where he was still seated as he was putting things in his bag; his understanding gaze quickly turning hard as it settled on something, or rather someone, behind her. She could guess only too well who the cause of his irritation was. She felt the hairs on her neck rise, betraying her inner turmoil, all too aware as she was of his presence.

It was all she could do to stay put and not move away from him, though, admittedly, he was not all that close to her. She would not give him the satisfaction of seeing the effect he had on her.

“What class do you have next?” He asked in a, strangely enough, genuinely curious voice and she could almost picture the grin on his face for some reason.

“Algebra,” Harry answered for her, his voice, seemingly calm, spoke volumes of his true feelings, “Not that it’s any of your business.”

She could have sworn Kyle’s sudden fit of cough was nothing but a disguise to the dark chuckle he was not daring enough to let out. Harry seemed to have seen right through it since his glare intensified.

“We have the same class,” came his drawled, dreaded observation, “Shall I walk you, sweetheart?”

She was glad her back was still facing him for she was sure she wouldn’t have enjoyed seeing his reaction upon her gaping at his proposal. With her heart drumming loudly in her ears, her breathing coming out in short silent gasps, she closed her eyes, trying to calm down and think of a reply that would not make her look like a fool.

Barely seconds later, she felt a warm hand grasping hers. Her eyes snapped open just in time to witness the deadly glare Kyle was given by her best friend. Had she been the one on its receiving end, she would have probably run away or something.

Kyle did no such thing. He simple chuckled, openly this time, to her utter and complete disbelief.

He was left there, standing alone in the classroom, chuckling to himself like a mad man. She, on the other hand, was being pulled out of there.

To her chagrin, it turned out that English and Algebra were not the only classes Kyle shared with them. It was quite the opposite actually; he had every single one with them.

For Harry to have an exactly similar schedule to hers was nothing to dwell on; it was custom. For Kyle to have the exact same one was quite the surprise though –whether it be good or bad, she couldn’t decide.

It annoyed her too – extremely so – that she had to be dragged along all day long… but what annoyed her even more was the fact that she had a form of xenophobia – an extreme fear of strangers. Her heart going into overdrive, her hands getting all sweaty and everything; those were the tell-tale signs of an approaching panic attack.

She couldn’t bear the thought of losing sight of Harry. Hell, she wouldn’t be able to talk to any other classmate if he wasn’t by her side or, at the very least, nearby – like in the same classroom or something of the sort, with his reassuring soft gaze gently caressing her back.

He was her neighbor, and her most precious friend. He knew of her condition and thus always made sure she didn’t leave his side – unless she was with Alexandra. Her other best friend was the only other person she trusted fully and wouldn’t be so on edge with at school. She knew her since they were toddlers.