Beyond The Music

Chapter Thirty Four - Steven

It's been two days since I last saw Mika at school and if I'm being completely honest, it's driving me crazy thinking about her with that Ryder guy, Lincoln mentioned yesterday. I mean, it's not like we're together anymore or anything but that doesn't mean I gotta be happy with whatever punk she starts to grow feelings for after me. When I met up with Lincoln after school the other day after I saw Mika in the music room on the phone, it was really weird because he wasn't talking as much as he used to and whenever Mika or something was mentioned, half the table would go all quiet and act weird. I asked Lincoln about it and he just waved it off as nothing but I can't help but feel as if something happened that they wouldn't tell me about.

I ran up the stairs towards the science floor of the school but paused when I glanced out the window and saw Riley and Mika's new boyfriend outside, and neither of them looked happy. Especially Riley considering he was being held up against a wall by his collar and the other guy was at least a head taller than him and looking very calm, which was surprising since Ryder looked as if he was about to run away screaming.

I laughed quietly to myself at the thought but stopped when I saw Ryder glance up at me and smile a smirky grin before waving with his free hand while the other held Riley firmly against the wall. What the hell?

Just before I turned away, he pulled out a mobile phone and held to his ear as he spoke to whoever was on the other line, all while never taking his eyes off of me. Um...okay then.

"Hey, Steven. What are you doing? Class is about to start."

I turned towards the classroom to see Mr Steffano standing in the doorway with a smile.

Glancing back out the window for a second, I nodded slightly and smiled back at the teacher, "Right. Sorry, just got caught up on something."

"Well, come on then. Can't wait for you to finish staring out the window, I've got a class to teach."

As I made my way into the classroom, I chuckled softly under my breath and glanced around the room quickly in hopes of seeing Keira but no such luck when I saw that her chair was empty, as well as Lincoln's but as soon as Mr Steffano handed back our assignments from last week, Lincoln walked in with a secret smile and giddy look in his eye as he took his seat beside me and silently listened to the instructions about our exam in a few weeks time after prom.

By the time the lesson finished, I was so lost in thought that I didn't hear Lincoln calling my name until I was already out the door and half way down the stairs before he grabbed my arm and pulled me to a stop. "Dude. Were you even listening to me back there?"

I shook my head slightly and frowned, "Sorry. What did you say?"

He blew out a long breath and continued down the stairs along side me with a smile, "I asked if you've talked to Mika lately. I saw her the other day but she's been M.I.A since she left school early. I just figured that since you live behind her and all, you'd know what's going on with her lately."

I shook my head slightly and clutched the strap of my bag tightly within my closed fist, "I haven't seen or spoken to her since the music room. Well, actually, I saw her in her room yesterday but that's about it. That didn't mean to sound so creepy either." He laughed softly and shook his head slightly before giving me a sideways glance with a smirk.

"Spying on the fiery red-head again, I see. Well, I guess it makes no difference considering if it were any other guy, they'd do more than just glance at the window to see if she's home. They'd be hanging over the balcony, drooling in the dark during the times she forgets to close the curtains."

"Yo, we both know that I'd never do that if I want to keep everything where it belongs."

We both burst into peals of laughter as we headed outside into the warm air and towards the parking lot but paused when we saw Ryder leaning against my car with a smile as he spoke on the phone but hung up when he saw us.