Discovering Jordan

Chapter 1 : A Means to a Beginning

Hey, loves! Guess I should start with an introduction. My name is Jaiden, and I have been writing for a little over two years now. I'm super passionate, and I hope you enjoy this book! Also hope I can finish it before the deadline. XD

Please, enjoy. ;)

* * *

Everything about him is different in an 'I'm too cool for you' kind of way. I don't know if it draws me in or pushes

me away; maybe a little bit of both.

I think he intimidates the other guys around school. Here he is, waltzing onto campus half-way through the first

semester like it's the first day of school; no friends, girls hanging off of his arms like monkeys on a tree, and no shits to give.

Of course, I understand what it's like to walk into a school without having any friends. Hell, that's still me now.

But this guy... he's strange.

I think that makes him dangerous.

* * *

Ah, yes. Just another boring winter day. The skyline is grey with looming clouds filled to the brim with water, and the last of the leaves are abandoning their trees. Every person in sight is sporting a thick coat and boots or sneakers, their hoods resting complacently on their heads.

Like I said: boring.

At least, it was.

"I'm Jordan. You're a junior, right?”

My head snaps up, and I look around to see who he's talking to. His deep brown eyes bore into mine, and I find myself straightening quickly. My hand knocks a tube full of hydrogen peroxide over, and I hiss in surprise and frustration as I quickly pick up the empty tube and place it back in its rightful place.

Jordan lifts my heavily soaked lab write-up with a small smirk and a raised eyebrow. "Rachel, was it?”

I swallow my awkward laugh and nod, knocking my science goggles out of place. "That's me," I state, readjusting the goggles with pooched lips.

He looks down at me, his smirk stretching slightly. "I think your write-up is a bit wet.”

I catch my lower-lip between my teeth and chew on it. "Yeah. That might be a problem.”

Jordan chuckles before extending his hand. "Nice to meet you, Rachel.”

I eye his hand for a moment before accepting it. "You too..."

His grin is close to blinding, and I quickly pull my hand away from his in favor of straightening my lab coat. "You're new, right?" I ask, though I already know the answer. He may be new, but everybody seems to know him.

"Yeah," he answers, running a hand through his disheveled black hair, "transferred about a week ago.”

"From where?" I query, if only to keep an awkward silence from ensuing. Not because I actually want to know or anything crazy like that.

He waves his hand flippantly. "Nowhere important. You're a junior, right?"

I merely hum in response, my eyes trained on the experiment in front of me. I assume he'll take this as his cue to leave, but he just stands there, watching me with an entertained smirk.

I glare at him through the reflection of the glass tube and return my attention where it belongs: my work.

Out of habit, my tongue peeks out of the corner of my mouth as I add three drops of iodine to the tube. I jump when polite clapping starts from my left. I huff in response.

"Do you mind?" I ask sarcastically, straightening and crossing my arms and raising my eyebrows.

"Not at all," he says, motioning for me to continue with my classwork.

Smart ass, I snap internally, narrowing my eyes at him before turning back to the experiment with a frustrated exhale. He can be a smart ass for all I care, as long as he takes it somewhere else.

"Where's your lab partner?" Jordan queries, clearly not taking the hints I'm practically chucking at him and instead leaning against the black lab table.

"Over there flirting with Big-t**s," I respond absently, jabbing a thumb over my shoulder in the direction I assume my lab partner, Blake, is. Seniors are so hard to keep track of sometimes; they're like little bunnies: dense, horny, and reproducing all over the place.

Jordan snorts, and I can't help but crack a smile as I record the data on my mostly-dry data sheet.

Silence stretches between us. Carrying a conversation with him hasn't been the worst thing in the world. Truth be told, he's actually fun to humor, but I can't be getting tangled up in overly-attractive boys who are literally too cool for school.

It's bad enough that I've had to turn myself into a social pariah to keep my grades up. I don't need to be dealing with a 'bad boy' as well.

"Be sure to bring a typed-up copy of your lab next class," Mister Dalton states in his usual monotonous tone, having to raise it to be heard over the chatter of his mostly-senior class.

"Yeah, like anyone is actually gonna do it," someone calls out, making the whole class dissolve into jeers of agreement and chuckles.

I hold my fist in front of my mouth to hide my own laugh and gather my supplies. The bell chimes, and everyone leaves in a hurry; everyone but Jordan, who stands by the door with his bag slung over his shoulder.

"You comin', Red?"

My nose wrinkles at the nickname. "Gee, never heard that one before."

Jordan grins, showcasing his rows of perfectly white teeth. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was Apollo's long-lost twin brother. "I like you."

The words inspire a series of coughs and choking noises from me, and I hack until my vision blurs.

Not good, not good.

"Really?" I finally manage. "Why's that?"

He shrugs. "Dunno. You seem... different."

Not good, not good.

"Nah!" I say, sounding fake even to my own ears. "Just an average girl. Pretty normal and boring." I pop my lips and shrug, backpack straps in either of my hands.

Jordan eyes me suspiciously. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were trying to get rid of me."

"Me?" I gasp, a hand going to my heart. "Never."

Another boyish grin stretches his lips. "This. I'm telling you, shortcake: this is why you're different."

And with that, he's gone with the crowd.

Shortcake? As in―seriously? He was too lazy to say strawberry shortcake?

* * *

Wow. Got that out of my system! More to come soon.

I know this seems to pick up out of nowhere, but trust me when I say that this start is a meaningful one.

Xoxo, J.