Chapter 2-Seating Change

As Roxas walked to school the following morning, he stared blindly at the road as it went on ahead of him. He processed what Axel had told him when he had finally finished choking on ice cream.

...listen, Roxas. I love watching cute girls who don't even know I exist as much as the next guy. No, really. But in the long run, just watching from the sidelines doesn't contribute much to the overall win, does it? It may seem like laying low is the easiest thing to do, but trust me, if you like her this much NOW, imagine how hard it's gonna be in a month or two when she actually gets noticed by people. She may be a loner now, but in case you haven't noticed, she's pretty cute. Heck, guys from MY class have already begun to notice her, so obviously she's not gonna be flying under the radar for too much longer. How're you gonna feel when you're stuck "watching over her" and she's got a boyfriend, huh? How's it gonna be when she doesn't even know of your existence but she's got so many guys chasing after her that her entourage could form a club? You remember what happened with that Olette girl last year. She felt so claustrophobic she had to switch schools after someone stalked her.

He had a point. A really good point, too. Although it felt much safer to keep his distance, Roxas realized that the girl would indeed eventually attract a lot of attention. Obviously he couldn't be the only one who noticed how beautiful she was. It was just his choice whether he would do something about it now or have to suffer in silence later.

He sighed to himself and dug his hands deep into his pant pockets, feeling the unexpected weight of his bag as he made sure it didn't slip off his shoulder. He looked up and saw the huge school building getting closer and closer as he walked in the direction of the front doors, students filing in to start their day of sitting, and overall boredom. A small feeling of surprise came over Roxas as he hadn't thought he'd come this far in the short amount of time it seemed he'd been walking, but he shrugged it off and followed the crowd inside.

Axel met Roxas at the foot of the stairs in the far end of the school as he usually did. The narrow staircase was the only one in the school that led the way up to the roof and didn't just end there, forcing you to find another staircase. It had small platforms that broke off into the floors' respective hallways, but the stairs themselves just kept going up.

The platforms were so small and hidden from the hallways though, it would be easy to miss them and completely pass the stairway if you weren't intentionally looking for them. Because of this, it never really got noticed by other students and was often passed by without a second glance. That was just fine with Roxas though; he didn't want it crowded by people he didn't know who would more than likely just ruin them with graffiti and litter. It was a nice place just for him and Axel to hang out, besides the rooftop during lunchtime.

The boys said nothing as they climbed the stairs, both of them not only completely ready to go back to sleep, but more than willing to do so right there on the stairs if they so desired. Axel let out a loud yawn, giving Roxas a sudden urge to yawn as well. They reached the top in a matter of minutes and dragged themselves to their classrooms, waving a brief goodbye at the back entrance of Roxas' with a quick smirk from Axel telling him it was now or never. He rolled his eyes as his tall, slender friend meandered away.

Roxas stared at the door for a minute and thought about the girl, probably already sitting inside. She was always early, after all. Even though he wouldn't see her face, as usual, the thought of seeing her even that much made him a bit excited. He could feel his sleepiness start to slowly drain away and a small smile start to spread across his face. All the while his heart started to pound in his chest and work its way up to his throat, and his mind raced at a thousand miles per hour.

How am I gonna talk to her? What am I supposed to do?

He decided not to overthink things. They'd work out how they worked out. He opened the door slowly and noiselessly and slipped inside. He found the girl already in her chair with her sketchbook out, and he smiled. He knew it, she was always there before he was. Even from the first day she had been in the class, she was always there when he came in. A warm feeling spread through him when he thought about it, like maybe someday he could walk in and she'd turn around and say hello to him.

He took his seat behind her and watched the people pile in from the front entrance, happy he and Axel had found such a conventient alternative. Coming in from the front just looked dangerous, like if you made a wrong move you'd end up on the floor with footprints in your face and dirt or mud all over you, depending on how the weather was that day. No, thanks.

After everyone had found their chairs and were sitting near them (if not in them then ON them), the teacher walked in.

She was somewhat tall, with short blue hair and even bluer eyes. She was Roxas' favorite teacher, as she was a really sweet person and always cared about her students and helped them to succeed in any way she could. She also gave them snacks sometimes, so that was definitely a plus. She walked up to her chair and took off her jacket then moved to the blackboard, taking her signature blue chalk from the tray and writing something. When finished, she backed off so we could read it.

Seating Change.

Roxas' eyes widened to the size of saucers and his breath hitched in his throat, a lump starting to form. Seating change? Since when was there supposed to be a seating change?

"Alright everyone! I don't care where you sit, it just can't be where you are right now." The teacher said as the students began rising from their seats, exchanging intense stares with their friends and probably strategically pinpointing the exact location they would sprint to in the next minute or so.

After a moment's tense hesitation where the air itself seemed to stop flowing for just a second, the room almost turned into a madhouse. Kids practically turned chairs over as they got out of them (or OFF of them) and started toward their buddies, eager to find a seat with them. The only person who didn't seem to care where they sat was the girl, who just silently picked up her stuff and gracefully stood, probably waiting for the crowd to die down a bit. Roxas waited as well, hoping against hope that there would be an empty seat behind her-and if not, as least near her. Her head swiveled in search of a place, finally stopping in the direction of an empty chair in the middle of the room.

She headed towards it and so did he, stopping in his tracks when he realized the seat behind it was taken already by a blonde girl who looked like she had a crazy electric temper and would rip him to shreds if he so much as looked at her. Instead he chose life and looked around awkwardly, not knowing what to do, and quickly noticed there was only one more empty place.

Right next to the girl.

Clearing his throat softly, Roxas plopped himself down into the chair and dropped his bag to the floor, where it slid partway under his desk. He tried not to notice his cheeks growing warmer when he felt a pair of eyes on him. He turned his head to the left.

There, looking into his electric blue eyes with her clear crystal blue ones, was the girl, giving Roxas a curious look as she made a first impression. Her eyes lingered on him for a while, making his cheeks feel hotter and hotter. He noticed her soft-looking golden hair catch the sunlight as it fell over her right shoulder and he looked away, panicking that she might see his red face.

His conscience punched him in the gut over and over as he fought his desire to look at her again.

No no no. I can't. If I look at her, she'll notice I'm blushing. That's not manly, not even a little bit.

No, what's not manly is not facing her, whether I'm blushing or not.

Silently scolding his conscience for being so right all the time, he turned to look at the girl again. Surprise hit him when he saw that the girl was still staring at him. He stared at her cheek, afraid that if he looked into her eyes he might get lost in them. The girl suddenly gave him a small, soft smile, as if she was amused by him or something.

He didn't care if she thought he was a blushing idiot as his cheeks grew hotter than ever. Her smile was the most beautiful, stunning thing he'd ever seen in his life.

Hiiii everyone! I hope you enjoyed the second chapter! :D
Reviews, advice and stuff are appreciated a lot! :33 I look forward to sharing the next chapter with you all soon!

~WaywardWayfinder