I was met by the largest grin I had ever seen as I slid into my chair of second period English. Ashley, my best friend, sat in the chair next to mine, beaming, ready to explode with information. Her blond hair was pulled into a loose braid that fell to her waist. Her blue eyes were filled with mischievous excitement. 

I looked over as she whispered far too loudly, "Have you seen him? The new guy is HOOOOOOOOT." The last word came out like a song note. This time when he was mentioned, I could roll my eyes, and did.

"Yeah. Not great," I muttered.

She gasped dramatically like I had given her actual devastating news. It felt unnecessarily melodramatic. "Really? Bad personality? That's okay I can help him change that."

I raised a brow. "Ashley, that is what you said about the guy who collected bottle caps and the guy who stole cars for fun and the guy who would disappear for days at a time." I leaned my head down on the desk not wanting to have this conversation. "No. Just... find a normal one, okay? I really don't wanna have to come pick you up in the middle of nowhere after another terrible date."

"But we LIVE in the middle of nowhere." She flailed her arms in frustration. "That hardly seems like a fair ask."

"Look who cleaned up," Kristi said sitting down behind me.

"Can it," I muttered, not bothering to lift my head. Kristi had a habit of beating jokes into the ground.

"I'm just trying to give you a compliment, Ranch Girl," Kristi cooed, throwing her hair over her shoulder. 

I winced. The phrase, Ranch Girl, rang in my head like a painful chant. My dad had called my mom Ranch Girl. A gentle endearment. Tender loving words that had been a symbol of admiration and affection had now been transformed into an insult. Her pet name turned snide remark. I swallowed my irritation, determined to let it go. Kristi was just trying to get under my skin and it was working.

Suddenly the classroom door opened and Orion walked in, causing all the girls in the room to go quiet. He seemed oblivious to the silent stares as he checked his schedule and looked back up into the room. 

Recognizing me from our last class, he walked over and took the chair in front of mine.

Dang it. Pick another chair. 

Ashley nearly had a heart attack as Orion turned around to look at me. His eyes flickered over my appearance. "You cleaned up." 

Kristi giggled loudly, causing my blood to boil. I was getting tired of being noticed today.

"And you're still making stupid observations. Why don't you turn around and leave me alone." He looked surprised at my dismissive tone. Ashley squeaked in shock.

He turned and smiled at her. "Hi, I'm Orion."

"Hi!" she exclaimed. Recovering herself, she lowered her voice. "So you two have met?" she asked, glancing back at me before giving him her full attention again.

Orion nodded. "Yeah, I don't think your friend likes me." 

Still using those powers of observation, I see.

Ashley leaned forward, tilting her desk towards him. "That's a shame. What's not to like?"

Orion turned his onyx eyes back on me. Crossing his arms across the back of his chair, he leaned forward, his eyes curious, his smile quirked up at the side. "What don't you like about me, Ranch Girl?" 

A few giggles behind my back caused me to flinch as they murmured the apparent nickname Orion had pinned me with. The tone was wrong. It was a taunt, unkind. It made me want to protect my mom, but I didn't know how.

"I have a name," I said, trying to keep my irritation at bay.

"Well you never told me what it is so I had to call you something," he said with an easy shrug.

"Ranch Girl," a girl from my last class taunted two rows down.

"No, you didn't," I said a little too loudly. I needed the nickname to stop. I wanted to hit pause and erase what was happening. Others were openly watching us now, curious at my sudden uptick in volume. 

After an internal argument, I forced my mouth shut before I could say anything else. I didn't trust my ability to control volume at the moment.

Ashley stared at me, suddenly registering the hurt I had buried under the anger. She had known my mom and my dad's pet name for her. And the look on Ashley's face just made the entire situation worse. My pain was seen. It wasn't a secret.

"Her name is Alina," Ashley offered, turning to look at Orion. 

I couldn't tell if she was helping him or trying to keep me from ripping his head off. Either way, I offered her a glare to cover my bases. Orion gave her a bright smile in response. She let out a giggle like he had given her a reward for her help. I rolled my eyes, leaning back in my seat. 

My ally had been won over to the opposing side with a smile. His powers of charm were ridiculous. His eyes moved back to mine, a gentle smile crossing his lips. My heart sputtered, flustering me further. "Nice to officially meet you."

"Feeling isn't mutual," I replied dryly. There was something underneath that smile, something I didn't trust. I just couldn't put my finger on it yet.

"She's happy to meet you too," Ashley responded.

I whirled to stare at her, baffled. She knew I was far from happy. I was spiraling, furious, embarrassed, and hurt. She didn't look at me, too busy staring at Orion, lost in a trance. I shook my head wildly. "No, I'm not." I scoffed. 

Ms. Machie, our sixty-year-old English teacher, cleared her throat. "A problem?" she asked. I hadn't realized that class had started.

"No" Orion replied, his voice calm, his eyes steady on my face.

"Can I change seats?" I interrupted, looking up at Ms. Machie. 

There were a few gasps from the girls around the room. I ignored their sudden mix of glares and shocked faces. Seriously? He can't have won you all over? He's been here for like an hour. 

I needed to sit somewhere else. I didn't want to hear the Ranch Girl nickname anymore. It was getting to me. Irritating me to a very unhealthy level. Better that Orion spend time giving everyone else attention.

Ms. Machie looked at me, confused. "Whatever for Alina?"

Orion turned around and gave her an embarrassed smile. "I am afraid it's my fault. I will behave from now on. I promise." I watched the teacher melt in his hands. I hate him. Has everyone lost their minds?

"Very well. Problem solved," Ms. Machie replied with a bright smile. 

The problem was very much not solved, but before I could say anything else, class started and my moment was gone. Things only got worse from there.

...

I was spared Ashley's fangirling as I moved out of my English classroom, watching a group of girls surround Orion, offering to escort him to his next class. Ashley was first in line, leaving me to walk in peace. I needed a break from all things involving Orion's new fan club, and the strange animosity it apparently brought out from the girls around me whenever Orion and I interacted. I was just starting to relax when I walked into my Chemistry class and froze.

My desk had been sharpied. "RANCH GIRL" screamed up at me in bold black letters. I didn't understand the reason, but as I stared at the words, sitting next to profanity carved into the desk, being treated like it was no different, my heart stopped, ice washing through my veins. A part of me shattered. 

My mom. 

I rolled my hands into fists to keep them from shaking. It wasn't just a taunt I could ignore anymore. It was tattooed on my desk. I would have to stare at it and put my books on it.

The class filled. Murmurs expanded across the room as people saw my desk. "Ranch Girl," came out as snickers and sneers around me, a taunting melody that burned my cheeks and ripped at my heart. The teacher called everyone to sit, but I couldn't move. Frozen, eyes glued to those two words. What little peace of mind I had left, fizzled. 

I loved living and working on a ranch, so why did they make it sound like a bad thing? Why did it suddenly hurt to be me? Why was it the object of ridicule? Why had something that had once been a sign of love, been turned into something so wounding?

"Alina, please sit down," Ms. Dailey, a woman in her late thirties with wispy blond hair, ordered from the front of the classroom.

I shook my head. Heat bubbled in my stomach and expanded to fill my body. I swallowed. "No."

The room grew quiet. I pulled my eyes away from the desk and turned to look at Ms. Dailey. I wasn't a dramatic person, I wasn't even an outspoken person in most cases, but today I had been pushed too far. I wasn't going to roll over. I couldn't handle this anymore.

Ms. Dailey's brow rose in surprise. "Excuse me."

"I will not sit here," I said louder.

"There are no other seats, Alina." She motioned around the room, trying to make it clear to me that I didn't have another option. I glanced around and saw several people laughing, their hands covering their mouths, trying to keep it quiet.

"I don't care. I'll stand."

"Let her stand, she works all day anyway," someone said from behind me. The class erupted into chuckles. I closed my eyes, doing my best to keep a grip on my losing battle against hysteria.

"Sit down, Alina," Ms. Daily said again, her voice firm.

"No. I'm not sitting at this desk." My voice was far more even than I thought it should be. I crossed my arms to keep them from visibly shaking.

"Why not? It has your name written on it." A girl I barely knew said in the seat to my left. 

My world flashed red, a wild and cutting anger rising to the surface. I turned and slammed my hands down on her desk, killing the laughter.

"THAT. IS. NOT. MY. NAME!" I shouted. 

The girl squeaked, her chair jumping back a few inches, surprised by my outburst.

The room fell silent, shocked. "Alina! Out!" Ms. Dailey snapped. "Office! Now!"

...

I stared at the stain in the ceiling of the front office, doing my best to erase the words that felt burned into my mind. The principal insisted that I sit in the waiting area and use it as a "safe space to cool down." I couldn't cool down. Being inside made me antsy. I needed fresh air and green grass. I needed to be out of the building that had thrown me off-kilter. Not in a room with white walls, stale air, and flickering fluorescent lights. I was starting to feel claustrophobic as I stared down the stain. But all that did was make it harder to breathe.

I closed my eyes and tried to slow down my heart rate. I hadn't had a panic attack since—. I couldn't finish the thought. Jumping up, I ran for the door, losing the last bit of sanity I had left. The secretary protested behind me as I bolted.

"Sorry!" I gasped as I ran through  the office door. Then I slammed into someone, lost my balance, and fell backward, making my day even more magnificent. 

A hand gripped my wrist and pulled me steady before I could hit the ground. I looked right up into Orion's charcoal eyes. He looked me over, concerned. "You okay?"

I blinked, surprised by the calm that instantly washed over me. I took in my first full breath in what felt like forever, my head clearing slightly. "I need to get outside." I closed my eyes, trying to steady myself.

"Did something happen?" he asked, his tone strange. Angry?

My calm shattered, the sharpied words ripping through my mind. He was the cause of my turmoil. "Stay away from me." 

The words came out biting, but my voice cracked, betraying my anger, revealing the hurt underneath it. I pulled my wrist free, moved past him, and ran until I reached fresh air.

...

I sighed as Ashley and I walked towards our lockers at the end of the day, wrung out and exhausted. It had taken mere hours to have my identity stripped and morphed into a joke that caused eyes to flick over me, appraisingly, questioning how worthy I was of being welcome. 

Note to self, always change after work.

"I can get this nickname squashed if you were open to me using a little violence. Maybe keying a car or two." Ashley wiggled her eyebrows at me playfully as she swung her car keys from her fingers in a threatening manner.

I shook my head. "Save those moves for your crazy future boyfriends."

She laughed, pocking me in the side. "You really are having a bad day! You don't normally pull out that level of sass."

We reached our lockers and I found Orion opening his locker— the one next to mine. 

"What the hell?" I groaned.

He looked up, his full lips quirking up slightly when he saw my irritation. "Seems like we're locker buddies." 

I stared at him in disbelief, my brain shutting down. 

How is he always around? Is he doing this on purpose? The locker next to mine belonged to someone else yesterday. Why is it his now? How is he doing this?!?

Orion seemed to relax as I grew more irritated, far more aware of me than anyone else around him. 

A chill went down my spine as I looked into his face. Something flickered in his expression, a hint of challenge underneath the charm. He was making a point to mess with me, to make my life hell. But why? 

"I don't bite," he teased, the challenge disappearing. He looked almost amused by my anger. His eyes suddenly flashing with sparks of violet. 

I blinked. The violet color gone. It must have been the fluorescent lights in the hall. It had been a beautiful contrast to his obsidian eyes, irritatingly so. 

Something so beautiful shouldn't be so irritating. 

I didn't trust how enticing Orion was. Everything from his ebony black hair, raven-colored eyes, melodic voice, to his entrancing aura pulled people in, encouraging them to trust an exterior that didn't match the mystery underneath. Something about him was off, wrong, and strange. I felt a pull towards him whenever he looked at me. But something inside told me not to trust him. To run and hide. An instinct that deserved to be listened to. He was turning things upside down, making my life terrible and I had known him for less than a day.

I glared at Orion. "I am more worried about what kind of river I am gonna dump your body into if you keep talking to me." I pulled my books out of my locker and slammed it closed.

"Wow," he leaned against his locker, shoving his hands into his pockets, looking me up and down with his striking eyes. It sent a stranger shiver down my spine, which only riled me further. I wasn't going to fall for whatever fake charms he was pulling on the others. 

He tilted his head to the side, amusement clear in his voice. "I have known you for what, six hours and you already hate me."

"Yep. Must be a new record." 

I flinched as I heard a few other students call me 'Ranch Girl' as they walked by. Ashley turned to shout at the girls but I shot her a look to keep quiet. I didn't want her to get sucked into this. Enough rumors went around about her. She didn't need to get roped into another one.

Orion gave a slow, grin, his eyes hard, looking strangely relieved at my open hatred. "Go ahead and hate me. I don't care."

---

Thank you for reading chapter two! I hope you are enjoying the story! Or are at least curious to see where it goes!

UPDATE DAYS - A NEW CHAPTER EVERY WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY!

What do you think of Ashley?

What about Orion, has your opinion of him changed? 

Is Orion hiding something? 

Do you think things will get worse between her and Orion?

CHAPTER QUESTION - Have you ever had a school rival? Or someone who rubbed you the wrong way? How did you handle it?