Stuck in the Middle (MxMxM)?

The next class he had was BCIS, where he would learn about business software. He had been looking forward to this since it would take place in a room full of computers, and he could tuck his head down and do whatever. As long as he turned in his assignments and passed his tests, who cared if he paid attention?

Kendric probably.

Sitting next to him, with his head propped on his fist and eyes locked onto Ryder, was Mr. Rudeboy himself.

He tried to ignore the man, but that meant paying attention to the lecture. It sucked.

The teacher went over the basics of the class. Where to find their syllabus, how to find their assignments, where to upload their homework, and how to access their virtual labs. She then had the class discuss what they already knew about office software and what they expected out of the class.

Neither Kendric nor Ryder offered their incentives.

Once she dismissed everyone, he grabbed his bag and was about to walk out when the tattooed man blocked his path.

"Did you talk to someone else about your attack?"

Ryder glanced around the room, wondering if anyone else found this guy's behavior weird. However, no one was paying attention as they hurried out to their next destination. Ryder himself had a thirty-minute break till his next class, so he didn't have anywhere to escape to for now.

"Er...Yeah?"

"Who?"

"Why?" He decided to bite back. "You keep asking me questions, but I don't even know you. It's getting a little creepy. Especially with you staring at me so much."

Kendric froze while his mind worked to explain himself. Ryder waited, but when nothing came out, he sighed and pushed past the man.

He was on campus grounds with too many people around to be worried about a random bully. No matter how scary the guy was, he wouldn't let himself be pushed around. Not like in high school.

Back when he'd first attended public school, he quickly learned that he had no social skills. Having spent all his time only talking to his parents and their friends, he had no one his own age to interact with. So when the opportunity came to socialize with other kids, he fumbled, hard.

He pushed the memories down, reminding himself that he ultimately did make a few friends and even a girlfriend. Ex-girlfriend now.

"Wait!" That same voice called after him, making Ryder turn around more out of surprise than interest.

Kendric's arrogant demeanor had fallen. "W-Was the person you talked to named Adan?"

Ignoring the stutter, Ryder quirked a brow. "Yeah. Why?"

"Just wondered..." He returned to his intimidating poise. "It'd be best if you did not talk to him anymore."

"Why not? He was nice."

"That's just an act. Don't fall for it. We have a class together, so if you need anything, I can help."

Ryder shifted his backpack to the other shoulder and clicked his tongue. "You have a weird way of talking to people."

"Today has been unusual. I will do better."

Ryder had no idea what to say in response to that. The man was very direct but was also trying to be nice. So maybe Kendric was socially awkward too? Well, if that was the case, who was he to judge a guy for trying?

"If that's a promise, then sure. I'll come to you if I have trouble in class."

He saw the man's eyes soften ever so slightly before walking away.