Beauty in Disguise #wattys2018

Chapter 14: I Can Be Odd and Anti-social

"Hey Ryder," I said and Ryder gave me a smile.

"Hey Dylan," he responded and I sat at the bench next to the hammock. Ryder sat up and stared right at me.

"You look down. Care to talk?" he asked and I shrugged.

"I am fine Ryder, I promise," I said and Ryder chuckled.

"Alright," he said and I rolled my eyes.

"I saw that Dylan," Ryder teased and I laughed, "You are not like any girl I have met before."

"Eh, I get that a lot. I can be odd and anti-social at times," I said and Ryder chuckled.

"You remind me of my girlfriend, Jane," Ryder said and I raised my eyebrow at him.

"You have a girlfriend?" I asked and Ryder chuckled.

"Yeah, she would really like you," Ryder said, "She prefers quiet and likes random stuff."

"Where is she now? If you don't mind me asking," I said.

"She is in med school in Massachusetts," Ryder said and I nodded.

"She is probably a genius right?" I asked and Ryder nodded.

"We had that cliché nerd meets athlete," Ryder joked and I laughed.

"What sport did you play?" I asked.

"Soccer. Soccer was my life in high school. I considered being a professional soccer player in college," Ryder said and I nodded.

"Why the change of mind?" I asked.

"Life happened Dylan. My father used to be in the Kingsfords and I guess I got swept up in the crew as well. I did get a scholarship for soccer, but I wasn't good enough for a professional team," Ryder said and I nodded.

"You are probably bomb at soccer though," I said and Ryder chuckled.

"How about you? Did you do any sports in high school?" Ryder asked and I shrugged.

"Track and cross country. That was pretty much it," I explained.

"That's cool. You look like a runner," Ryder said and I gave him a weird look.

"Thanks?"

"I mean it as a compliment because you have those runner legs," Ryder said and I laughed.

"How do you know so much about runner's legs?" I asked and Ryder chuckled.

"My girlfriend also likes to run in her free time and she calls it runner's legs," Ryder said and I nodded.

"I can't wait to meet her," I said and Ryder smiled.

"Ryder, Chief wants to see you," Wynn said as he walked up to us.

"Did he tell you why?" Ryder asked.

"No. It's nothing bad though," Wynn said and Ryder nodded.

"I got to go Dylan. It was nice talking to you," Ryder said.

"It's no problem. See you later," I said and waved to him.

"Hi Wynn, how are you?" I asked and Wynn rolled his eyes.

"Don't waste your energy on small talk with me," Wynn said coldly.

"I am just trying to be nice," I said and Wynn rolled his eyes before walking back to the house.

"Hey Dylan. How's it going?" Kara asked as I walked into her room.

"Good. Just asking, but what is Wynn's problem with me?" I asked and Kara laughed.