Wylder and the Secret Rockstar

Chapter 2

2

If there was one class Wylder didn’t hate starting the year on, it was English lit. Last year, she’d had a teacher who actually inspired her to read the assigned books—no small feat—but then summer came, and she’d completely forgotten the assigned summer reading.

“Do we have to go to class?” Wylder flopped onto Diego’s bed. They had their first class together, and she was just glad she didn’t have to face the rest of their classmates alone.

Diego turned in his computer chair and pushed his glasses up into his hair, making it stand on end. He gave her a bleary-eyed stare that made her sit up and look at him more closely.

Rumpled clothing. Red eyes.

“Diego Reyes, you’ve been up all night.” They’d talked about this. Many times. “I thought you were going to quit doing that now that your app is in the hands of your dad’s company.”

He gave her a sheepish look. “That was before I decided to go stay with my grandmother in Venezuela for the summer instead of working with the team to get this code done. There’s still something not right.”

She rested her chin on her hand. “Go on. Keep talking nerdy to me. It’s kind of hot.”

“Wylder.” There was admonishment in his tone, but his reddening face showed his obvious embarrassment.

“You know what else would be hot? If you talked so long we missed class.”

He looked at the clock on his desk and jumped to his feet. “We have to go.”

She groaned. “Why? No one will miss us.”

Before she could answer him, her phone rang with a FaceTime request. It was her dad, and she sort of missed him already. Ignoring Diego and his worry, she answered. But it wasn’t only her dad who appeared on the screen.

Beckett grinned, sticking out his tongue.

“Cute.” She twisted onto her stomach, looking to Diego and rolling her eyes. “Are you in Twin Rivers with Dad?”

Her dad popped up behind him. “He surprised us.”

“I’m heading up to Columbus for a thing and stopped in for breakfast.”

“Okay.” She tried not to let the jealousy show on her face. When she’d first agreed to come to the academy and live on campus, she’d had no other choice if she wanted to graduate, but it put a divide between her and her family. She’d never admit to anyone how much she missed the days when it was the four of them living in the same house, a family against the world.

“Where are you?” her dad asked. “Not on your way to class, I see.”

“Better not be a boy’s room.” Beckett narrowed his eyes.

With a sigh, she flipped the camera around to show a flustered Diego. “Hello, sir.”

“Don’t call my dad sir, ya weirdo.” Wylder couldn’t help laughing at Diego’s awkwardness.

“I think the sir was for me.” Beckett winked.

“In that case, Diego and I have to get to class.”

Her dad smiled. “Who knew all we had to do to prevent our girl from cutting school was call to annoy her?”

Beckett leaned in until only his eye was visible on the screen. “Class starts in five minutes. Get to English, Wylds.” He hung up, leaving her staring at a blank screen.

“Wait,” she said as if he could still hear her. “How do you know my schedule?”

Dragging herself from the bed, she slid her messenger bag over one shoulder and stepped into her Converse sneakers, bending to pull the back of them over her heels. “Come on, Diego. Wouldn’t want the school crying to my brother about how I’m a bad influence on their smartest student.”

Beckett not only paid her tuition, he was the school spokesman in commercials. It was the only way he’d gotten her in after she’d broken into her last school and thrown the most epic of epic parties. Seriously, kids in town still talked about it.

She was that girl. The one students at Twin Rivers High spoke of in whispers, wondering where she’d disappeared to, probably assuming she’d gotten herself thrown in juvie somehow.

By the time Wylder and Diego reached the red-brick quad surrounded by ancient academic buildings, they only had two minutes to get to Cambridge Hall.

“How are we in the same English Lit class?” Diego asked as they ran up the stone steps.

“You mean how am I in the smart class?” Wylder elbowed him, reaching for the door.

“Well, yeah.” Diego hid his smile behind his ever-present coffee mug.

“I happened to have done really well in my English Lit class last year, so they put me in with the smarties this year.”

“Good for you, Wylder. Better hurry, we’re almost late.” Diego held the door to the classroom open for her.

“Come in, come in,” the teacher said, facing the whiteboard. “We were just getting started, so take your seats.”

Diego rushed past her, but Wylder stood frozen in place, her books falling to the floor as the teacher turned around.

“Bash?” Her mouth went dry as she stared at the man she’d spent the summer with, the one she hadn’t been able to get out of her mind.

The blood rushed from his face as he met her gaze. He opened his mouth, seeming to take all the oxygen in the room into his lungs. “My name is Mr. Cook. Please take your seat.”

Please take your seat? That was all he had to say?

No. No. No. This couldn’t be happening.

“Wylder.” Diego pointed to two desks near the front.

She didn’t see any of the other students as she slid onto the cold blue chair. Her bag dropped to the floor as she folded her hands underneath her ripped jeans. A single dreadlock escaped from where she had them braided back into a thick ponytail, and she blew it out of her face, using the action to distract her for just a moment.

It didn’t work. Her heart pounded against her ribs. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Crash.

Everything rushed in at her. Sebastian’s words at the front of the class as he introduced himself. The disrespectful chatter of her classmates—the girls in particular—as they stared at the new teacher, the man who was too young to teach them, and way too good looking.

And hers.

No, not hers.

“Oh, gosh.” Folding her arms on the desk, she lowered her forehead, trying to get her breathing under control.

It made so much sense now. Logan being here.

The new job Sebastian had told her about. He’d said he was a teacher. She’d just never imagined he’d be her teacher.

From the scathing look he sent her way, she realized she’d never told him she was a high school student. Nineteen wasn’t a lie, but not many kids had to repeat a year.

Lordy, this was messed up.

“You okay?” Diego hissed.

“No.” She didn’t have it in her to lie. “No, Diego. I’m really not.”

“Everyone, quiet down!” Wylder focused on Sebastian’s voice, so familiar, yet strangely distant. This was the voice of the authority figure, the teacher, not the boy with the smiling eyes, the one who could barely eat hot wings and helped her plan a ridiculous Christmas in July celebration for her brother.

Wylder chewed on her lip, drinking in the sight she’d longed for since the moment they parted ways about a month ago.

“Don’t forget me, Wyld Child. Because I’ll never forget you.”

He’d said those words to her, and nothing had ever felt more real. But now… now his glare burned into her, and she knew.

He wished for nothing more than to forget what they’d had.

Sebastian cleared his throat. “My name is Sebastian Cook. You may call me Mr. Cook.” His eyes settled on Wylder. “I am not your friend. I know I am young, but I have every confidence you will treat me with the respect I deserve as your teacher. That means not speaking while I am speaking.” His eyes cut to two girls who’d been giggling. They shut up.

“We are going to have a great year in this class, and I’m looking forward to introducing you to many classic stories.”

Had theirs been a classic story? Two people from different worlds falling in love over a summer vacation, only to return home and find their worlds on a collision course.

See? She’d been right. It was very Grease of them. Though, even Sandy hadn’t had to deal with the only boy she’d ever felt anything for being her teacher.

One hundred percent off-limits.

Even Wylder’s memories now felt taboo, tainted by this knowledge their romance had been wrong.

He moved around the classroom like he belonged there, like he was home, with an ease and a comfort she’d never felt anywhere, and she couldn’t take her eyes from him. His hands moved as he talked, good hands, strong hands.

This version of Sebastian was much more put together than the one she’d fallen for. Pressed clothing—black slacks and a red shirt and charcoal sports coat. His chocolate brown hair was styled, every piece in its place.

She preferred him with rain dripping down unkempt locks, a stranger standing in front of a stage, dancing to music they both loved—Luke’s music. She’d found her way to his concert while Becks performed at the same music festival. But instead of falling deeper in love with her idol, she’d kissed a stranger, a man she’d never expected to see again.

Weeks later, they ended up at the same recording studio as if fate brought them back together.

Was this fate at work again? Or something crueler?

“Wylder.” Diego nudged her. “Did you hear Mr. Cook?”

“What?” She snapped out of the memories that would only bring more confusion.

“He wants us discussing our first book on the summer reading list in groups of three before starting the writing prompt on the screen. I invited Logan to join our group.”

“Why?”

He gave her a disappointed look. “He doesn’t know anyone else.”

Where was the shy Diego from the year before? The one who’d never reach out to someone, even if that someone was Killian’s roommate. There was a new confidence in him brought out by his boyfriend, and she envied that. Her eyes flicked to Sebastian. No one would ever claim Wylder lacked confidence, but those people didn’t know her, they didn’t know everything she’d been through.

That the confidence was the walls protecting her from the rest of the world.

Turning in her seat, she found Logan watching her. “I didn’t realize you were in this class.”

His smirk didn’t have an ounce of kindness. “That’s because you were drooling over my brother like every other girl in this class.” He looked up. “Oops.”

Wylder closed her eyes, realizing exactly who had to be standing near them.

“Hey, Bro.” Logan shot him a smirk. “Good to have a distraction other than me.”

Wylder hadn’t realized it when she’d only been watching Sebastian, but Logan was right. Their classmates stared at the two Cook brothers like they were exhibits at the zoo.

Sebastian frowned. “Logan, get to work.”

Logan lifted a hand in salute. “Whatever you say, teach. Just do me a favor and give my girl Wylder here a smile. I know she’s just dying to see those pearly whites.”

Sebastian grumbled something under his breath and walked away to check on another group.

Logan leaned in and dropped his voice. “You thought Luke was a jerk. Well, he learned it from somewhere.” He crossed his arms over his chest and rested back in his chair. “Aw, babe, don’t look so sad. I’m just helping you get over the teacher crush I know you’ll develop.”

Diego chortled beside him, and Wylder scowled. “It’s not funny, Diego.”

Diego held in his next laugh, but his body still shook. “I don’t understand why everyone is looking at our group though.”

“It’s that stupid mug.” Wylder pointed at Logan’s smug face.

“That’s not nice, Wylder.”

“Well, neither is you inviting Logan Cook to work with us and making us a spectacle.”

“I still don’t understand.”

Logan sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face. “It’s because I have my twin brother’s face.”

“Who is your twin?”

Wylder pursed her lips. How could Diego not know?

“Luke Cook.” Logan bit out the name.

Diego still looked lost. “Is he a hockey player? I enjoy watching hockey with Killian, but it’s hard to see their faces with those helmet things.”

“No.” Logan laughed. “Is this guy for real?” He directed the question to Wylder.

Irritation rose in her as she got the feeling Logan was laughing at Diego, not with him. She didn’t get a chance to respond before a note dropped on her desk.

“Oh.” Logan leaned over. “Detention on your first day? Tres harsh.”

She swatted him away and unfolded the detention slip. But it wasn’t filled out with her infraction. Instead, there were four words.

My office after class.

When she looked up, she only saw Sebastian’s back, the tense set of his shoulders, as he bent to help a group of girls.

No, this wasn’t good.

Not good at all.

Around her, people talked about Romeo and Juliet, the first in a long list of stuff Wylder had forgotten to read as Sebastian swept her off her feet this summer.

Sebastian walked to the front of the class. “All right, time is up. The writing prompt is on the screen, but before we dive into it, let’s do some day one stuff. Themes are the recurring ideas or takeaways in a story. We have three major interconnected themes in our story. Love. Conflict. Family. Let’s talk about the first of these.”

He looked down at the class list in his hand. “I’ll learn all your names quickly. For now… Wylder Anderson.” He lifted his eyes to hers. “Tell me what you took away from the love story. What do you think that theme was telling us?”

Wylder wanted to hate him, to tell him exactly how she felt, that he shouldn’t be here. He shouldn’t have crossed from his world into hers, that he didn’t belong.

But those words didn’t come. Instead, she stood, lifting her bag with her. His words in the note looped through her mind.

My office after class.

Who did he think he was?

“I didn’t read it.”

Disappointment shone in his eyes. Was he hoping she’d be a good student, that he could justify himself with the knowledge she was a star? “That’s a shame, Miss Anderson. Please take your seat, and I will find someone more prepared.”

Miss Anderson. So cold, so distant.

“I didn’t read about their love because I was a little busy, Mr. Cook.”

His eyes held to hers in challenge. “Busy doing what?”

“Falling in love.”

With those words, she practically ran from the room. There’d be no going to his office, no explaining the words that had fallen from her lips, the words she didn’t know the truth of.

Outside, she gulped air and tried to still her shaking hands. It didn’t seem real.

She wasn’t supposed to see him again, summer flings weren’t supposed to reappear, to make one’s heart ache in a way only heartbreak could.

Because summer flings weren’t supposed to break hearts.

She lowered herself to a stone bench in the middle of the quad, knowing in only a few minutes students would flood from the buildings, filling her silence with their noise.

And she’d welcome it, because this time, the silence was too dang loud.