DogBird

Chapter 14: Roe

AP Chemistry went by smoothly with my attention being held by Teddy, Ren, and Taylen for most of the period. Ren didn't bring attention to my now bandaged hand—I had to admit it was a little funny seeing the rough and tough Ren pulling out a first aid kit in the hall. With attention back to school, they did everything they could to distract themselves again. They seemed to start a strange hair train beginning with me; Taylen messed with my hair behind me, followed by Ren messing with Taylen's hair, then Teddy stationed as the caboose, twisting Ren's hair into strange little points on top of his head.

Once the dismissal bell rang, I slowly began to gather my belongings as I idled, waiting for my next escort to show me the way to my next class. With the way that my day had been going, I wouldn't be surprised to find that they had already organized Monroe babysitting shifts.

As if on queue, Kyrie poked his head into the almost empty classroom, his eyes landing on me instantly and squinting as his familiar warm smile took up place on his gentle yet masculine face. He stepped the rest of the way into the classroom, his thumb linked through the backpack strap slung over his shoulder. He straightened the fingers on the same hand in a small wave as he strode leisurely over to us. "How did class go?" he asked, sounding like how I imagined an actual parent would sound talking to their child. It almost made me giggle as a strange feeling of happiness washed over me.

"Boring," Ren grunted as he slung his own backpack over his shoulder, his hair still stuck up in the random spirals.

Kyrie's mossy eyes tracked those little points in amusement, a huff of laughter coming from his nose as he nodded. " 's that right?"

"First days are always so boring," Taylen groaned dramatically, slumping over sideways until his head rested on my shoulder. "Can't we just get straight into the classwork and skip these awkward first day introductions?" I silently agreed with Taylen on that one with a single nod. First days of school and Roe did not mesh well together. I guess school and Roe just didn't mesh well, period.

Kyrie gave him a comforting pat on the back before slipping my backpack seamlessly off my shoulder and onto his own. "It's almost over, and once we're done, I'll get you a banana split, yeah?"

At those two words, Taylen's already vibrant irises seemed to glisten even more like the ocean than I thought possible. He pointed a finger at Kyrie with a stern face that was barely holding back the giddiness behind it. "No take backs. Promise?" He stuck out his pinkie and Kyrie linked his without hesitation.

"Alright, Tay gets his ice cream and now we can get fucking moving," Ren urged, shuffling the small group out into the hall to allow the next period's students to file in.

A hand plopped onto the top of my head and I spun around, catching Teddy's bright smile that made his eyes close. "Catch ya later, Roe. See you guys!" He didn't even finish saying goodbye before he began his trek to his next class.

Everyone waved to him before Ren and Taylen split away too, leaving just Kyrie and me. It was quiet between the two of us, but it was comfortable. He let off such a calm and safe aura that it was hard to not be comfortable around him.

From my peripheral, I caught Kyrie glancing my way a couple times, his face seeming slightly conflicted. I turned to him, cocking my head as a gesture to ask him what was wrong. When he realized I was looking at him, he let out a sheepish chuckle, rubbing the nape of his neck. "Sorry, was I being obvious?" I gave an indifferent shrug, staying silent. After one more moment of hesitation, Kyrie met my gaze. "We're a little stifling, aren't we?" My eyebrows bounced at his comment and I looked away, rolling it over in my mind.