"Watch where you're going, dumbass!" Ryan snapped as he collided with someone in the crowded hallway.
The hallway fell silent. Everyone stopped in their tracks like as if someone hit a mute button , eyes wide, whispering among themselves.
While Ryan felt a surge of annoyance. Who the hell had the nerve ....the audacity to bump into him?
Ryan wasn't one to go unnoticed. His presence demanded attention, but he wasn't looking for anyone's approval. His messy, dark brown hair flopped into his eyes, which were the kind of deep blue that made you want to look twice. He had a smirk on his face, the kind that said he didn't care about the world and the world didn't need to care about him. His hands were shoved into the pockets of his black hoodie, and his jeans hung just low enough to give off that effortlessly cool vibe.
The guy he bumped into was taller than him, with a build that screamed strength. His biceps strained against the sleeves of his shirt, his body looked like it belonged in a gym ad, not in the middle of a university hallway.
His black hair styled perfectly, almost as if he'd just walked off a magazine cover. But what stood out the most were his eyesâgrey, piercing, and hidden behind a pair of glasses that somehow made him look even hotter. He was the perfect combination of nerdy and muscular, the kind of guy you didn't mess with.
Ryan's first thought was that this guy was trouble. His clothes were neat, but his presence screamed arrogance. He didn't flinch or apologizeâjust stared back at Ryan with a calm, almost amused expression.
The guy pushed up his glasses with one hand, his eyes never leaving Ryan's. "You're the one who wasn't looking," he said coolly.
Ryan's anger flared. " Even with your four eyes you still couldn't see me coming huh?"
"Got quite the mouth for the new kid," he shot back, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
Everyone in the hallway held their breath, waiting to see what would happen next.
It was Ryan's first day at Westbrook University ,he'd just moved into town, but he had a reputation that preceded him.
Apparently, he'd been kicked out of his last school for getting into a massive brawl during a class, nearly breaking some teacher neck and kids nose. He wasn't the type to back down from a fight, and he had a temper that could set off alarms.
Just then, a group of girls approached, their high heels clicking against the floor. They looked like they belonged in a barbie commercial, all perfect makeup and designer clothes. The leader of the group, a blonde with sharp eyes, stepped forward, glaring at Ryan with what looked like her tail of friends , rather followers.
"Do you even know who you're talking to?" she hissed. "Who do you think you are?"
Ryan raised an eyebrow, as if noticing them for the first time. He glanced around at the hallway before looking back at the blonde.
"Oh, you're talking to me?" he said, his voice laced with mock surprise.
The entire hallway burst into laughter. The girls looked furious, their faces red with embarrassment. No one ever talked back to them like that, especially not someone like Ryan, who usually stayed out of the spotlight.
Ryan just stood there, enjoying the chaos he'd caused. He wasn't someone who cared about fitting in or making friends. He lived for moments like this, when he could throw a wrench into the well-oiled machine of university life and watch it come to a screeching halt.
Him and Kaiden locked eyes for a while as though they were having a cowboy showdown.
Slowly Kaiden walked over to a group of guys sitting by the lockers. They were all built like himâmuscular, confident, clearly the popular crowd in school. They greeted him with laughter, clearly entertained by what had just happened.
One of them leaned over and said to Kaiden, "You're going to let him get away with that?"
Kaiden's smirk grew wider, his eyes gleaming. "C'mon Jake, you know me better than anyone, he wants to play...let the games begin" he replied, his voice low but full of mischief.