The Unexpected Alpha

Kade's POV,

The pasty tint with sun-dried concrete blotches and grime accumulation gives the structure an eerie prison-like appearance when I gaze up at it. My father received a job offer around two hours away from his former one, thus I will be spending my final year at a new school that has block letters displayed at the top.

As I let out a sigh, I glanced at my sister, who shares my anxiety about her first day of school. Starting high school in a whole new town, she has no clue who she will meet, where she will be going, or what to anticipate. As I shift into park, I extend my hand to grasp hers. "Do not worry too much; everything will work out in the end. You just need to find out what to do next, okay?"

"Alright," she says, nodding her head as she swallows the lump in her throat.

Her hands are slightly trembling as she reaches into the backseat for her backpack; this tells me that she is still quite anxious, which is understandable given the gravity of the situation. I would have stayed home all year if I had to start high school on top of entering a new school.

My sister and I get in the car, and I take the keys. Teens are jumping out of their cars, yelling and embracing pals they likely saw only last week; according to our new neighbors, there are usually parties the week before school begins to celebrate the end of summer and welcome return to the grind of summer classes.

Before my sister and I walk inside the school from the parking lot, we always lock our car. Emilie glances at the other customers who have come in, chatting with their friends, and I see that she is fidgeting with her hands.

"Well, I have been dancing after school, so Dad has promised to pick you up from work. There is a chance he will need a little more time to get here, so if he is late, do not fret," I tell her, trying to divert her attention from her current worries.

After she says, "Okay," I hold the door open for her and go with her into the office, which is located off the main corridor just inside the school. A blonde woman in a purple blouse is pounding away at a computer keyboard with her false nails as I make my way to her desk.

She smiles broadly as she asks, "Hi, how may I be of service to you today?"

Her sister and I are new here, so we need to obtain our schedules and maps, too. I introduce myself as Kade Brooks, and she nods her head and begins typing.

A woman sits down a few feet away from her, and she glances over at Emilie thereafter. "My darling, just tell Ms. Jennifer your name, and she will print up your itinerary."

While waiting for Emilie to approach the woman and give her her name, I glance out the office window and watch the people coming and going. As I wait, the woman in front of me prints up my agenda and a map, then she takes out a highlighter and circles important areas for me.

I nod my head in gratitude before waiting for my sister to finish explaining the layout of the building. "Alright, I circled all the halls where you have classes today. Your first one is upstairs. So, go out that door and to the right-that is where the stairs are." She then proceeds to label each hallway, so I should be able to find my way around.

I examine her schedule once she finishes and see that we both need to go upstairs, so I go ahead and lead the way. When I locate her initial chamber, I immediately face her and place my palm on her shoulder. "Pay attention, engage in conversation with your neighbors whenever possible, and do not hesitate to text me if you want any assistance."

After a brief embrace, she enters her classroom and finds a vacant seat. "I will, thank you, I love you. Have a wonderful day," she adds. As I observe, one of the girls seated at the desk adjacent to her gives my little sister a curious glance before uttering a subtle remark that catches her off guard. I turn aside, trying not to draw attention to myself or make her feel embarrassed if anyone sees.

My parents were worried about Emilie because she was the most apprehensive of the three of us, so I texted my mom to reassure her that she was doing OK when I found her classroom after making one full round of the upper floor. I then found a seat in the classroom that was not too crowded.

A blonde girl with a black tucked-in t-shirt, a flowery high-waisted skirt, and a kind demeanor approaches the desk in front of me and says, "Hi, my name is Jenny. May I ask who you are?"

After she says, "I am Kade," I keep scrolling through Instagram, determined to avoid this girl who is clearly just trying to flirt with me.

She reaches out to touch me, says, "Are you new here?" I quickly withdrew my hand so she could not touch me.

"Well, I am not exactly a stranger, am I?"

"Hey, Jenny, why don't you just give the child a break? It is his first day here, so give him some time to acclimate before you get all dramatic," said a girl with curly brunette hair, a white crop top, and a pale pink maxi skirt.

The Jenny chick remarks, "Why do you care, Melissa? You already have a man." She then crosses her arms and turns to confront the other female with a furious expression.

"Because I really do not want you to frighten the poor man on his first day," I say to the Melissa girl as I glance across at the charming Hispanic male sitting next to her. The kid has spiked dark hair, wears ripped jeans, a black t-shirt, and what appear to be expensive red shoes. Sitting next to him is the most attractive boy I have ever laid eyes on.

Along with his tan complexion and penetrating hazel eyes, he possesses light brown hair. He is sporting a jean jacket, white tee, skinny black pants, Adidas sneakers, and a jean jacket. I feel a shiver go down my spine and can not tear my gaze away from him the second he glances up. He flinches for an instant before he averts his gaze from me.

"I believe he is very OK with me being here," Jenny adds, offering me a kind grin.

I place my phone down and give it a sneer. To be honest, I do not believe it to be true.

"Well, why not? You have a beautiful woman by your side, so why not have me here?" she asks with a hint of sarcasm.

As I lean forward and place my hand on her arm, a sigh escapes me. "I do not like females, that is why."

Without hesitation, Jenny takes a seat before getting to her feet and making her way back to her desk. Melissa joins the two men in a lighthearted laughter before taking a seat in the chair she had just left behind. "I apologize for her; she seems a bit frantic."

Gesturing, I let out a little laugh. "No, I am perfectly alright. I really appreciate you standing by me. It is really meaningful."

"Oh, I am Melissa, by the way. I swear we did not even identify ourselves during the whole affair," she continues with a smile.

I grin and introduce myself as Kade. "Is she permanently that way?"

"Yeah, basically, she flirts with a boy for a couple of weeks until she gets bored and moves on to the next one. Whenever someone new comes here, she introduces herself first."

So pleased I found someone to tell me that before she could come too near, even after I told her no," I said while laughing.

In an effort to hide her laughter, Melissa covered her hand. "Yeah, I am happy I could be of use. It breaks my heart to think of another child in danger because he did not understand that all she wanted was him."

As Melissa's laughter resurfaced, I leaned back in my chair and remarked, "Well, I would never be wounded since she is not coming anywhere near mine." Her laughter continued. As the alert goes out, I watch as students dash to their respective classes, with a handful making their way into this one in search of a vacant desk.

Melissa adds, "Oh, sorry, this is my boyfriend Cody." The lad with the dark hair waves at me just before Melissa points to the handsome boy. "Joey, our friend, is here."

Before he avoids making eye contact, Joey smiles tensely at me. Given that Cody was the sole one directing his attention, I offer him a subtle wave. "Deliciously meeting you."

"You as well, dude. What brought you here during your last year?" he inquired of me.

"A job offer came in, and my dad convinced my mom it was a great opportunity, so here we are," I added while laughing, then checked my phone for a message from Emilie.

Just minutes before the last bell sounds, the instructor enters the classroom and settles at her desk, where she will prepare her laptop for the final exam. As I peer out the door, I notice an influx of individuals hurrying down the corridor; a handful of them appear bewildered as they stare at their schedules.

I inquired, "So, do you have any news about the dancing team?" Melissa perked up the second she understood my question.

Coach Erixon leads the dance team solo with the support of her wife, a professional dancer who has been in several Broadway musicals. "Are you on the dance team?" she asked me.

"When my parents registered for our school, my sister and I were the first to sign up."

She exclaims, "We do not have too many males interested in dancing, so this is fantastic news." The girls' dance program mostly focuses on jazz and contemporary styles, since that is where Erixon's strengths lie. "Maybe you will be picked to do a duet dance of music of your choosing," she adds.

I remark, "Maybe," just as the last bell rings and the teacher begins the lesson.

I take Emilie on a stroll after school is out for the day to check in on her. Whenever our classrooms were near each other, I would accompany her to school. She developed friends in some of her courses but not in others. I believe she had a decent day overall; she appears cheerful despite her anxiety over the mountain of schoolwork she must complete upon returning home in order to join us for supper this evening.

I head to the closest restroom and change into some black sweatpants, a black t-shirt, and sneakers since I am probably going to take my shoes off anyhow because I prefer that look. I go to the auditorium because, according to what my mom has been informed, it is where the dance team practices. The back wall has mirrors and a dance bar.

As I enter, I notice a group of individuals stretching onstage in what appear to be leggings, shorts, or sweatpants. As I ascend the steps to the stage, a petite, wavy-haired woman approaches me, dressed in yoga pants, a t-shirt, and ballet shoes.

"Hello, I am Coach Erixon. I noticed your name on the roster and thought, 'You must be Kade.'" She extends her hand for me to shake, and I take her words to heart.

Meeting you is a pleasure, I tell her.

She brings me a clipboard and says, "So, have you danced before? I just want to see what your ability level is at and move from there." She then proceeds to write down everything I answer.

"I have been dancing since I was nine years old. Additionally, for the past three years, I have done gymnastics to improve my flexibility, which in turn has helped my dancing," I tell her.

"Well, that is fantastic! I absolutely love hearing your thoughts and ideas for the routine that my wife and I create, so please do not ever be shy about sharing them with me," she assures me.

She asks whether I will be hesitant, and I assure her, "No".

Melissa enters the room at the same moment as Erixon begins team stretching with us. He then shows us the first routine that we will spend months honing for the school's four annual recitals.

"Engaging in a dialogue between two groups with two central themes, we will begin with a modern dance that draws inspiration from Black Swan; hence, there will be an evil side and an angel side, like black and white."

It seems exciting to everyone else, but I can't stop gazing at the person who seems to be staring at me. Joey, seated in the crowd with Cody sitting next to him, holding his phone between his hands, catches my gaze as I turn around to look behind me. Joey looks away in horror when he hears me gazing, then he mutters something to his companion and bolts out the door.

One of the blonde girls on stage says, "How will we decide who is on which side?" and I look back at the other people on stage. As we approach Erixon's computer, where she is showing the dance, Melissa walks up and joins my arm.

"We will divide you up evenly after we choose our two leads. We will follow our usual procedure when I have to make that call, which is I will teach the dance to everyone and then we will all do it together before I choose two of you," she explains.

While we all spread out, they nod in agreement that she should begin instructing us. She then instructs us to be prepared to perform in groups next time and dismisses us after around 1.5 hours of dancing. In order to change into khaki trousers, a white t-shirt with orange and blue flannel, and some Vans, I gather up my stuff and head to the closest restroom.

Melissa, Cody, and Joey will be waiting for me when I exit the restroom. They get a puzzled expression from me. "So, what is your plan?"

Melissa says, "We wanted to go out with you," as we begin to walk towards the parking lot. "How was your initial day on the job?"

With a nod, I indicate my cooperation. "It was not great, but it was not terrible either."

"The dancing team, were they enjoyable?"

"It was fantastic. Coach Erixon has some great ideas, and I believe the routine will look incredible if we do it well," I tell her.

With a little smile on her lips, she asks, "Why did you dress up?" as she tugs at my flannel slightly.

Laughing, I say, "I am going to supper with my family to celebrate the first day. I do not know too much about it." We leave the building and enter the parking lot.

Cody must be quite wealthy because he takes the keys out of his pocket and throws his suitcase in the back of the shiny black automobile we are stopping at. Before making her way to the passenger side, Melissa stretches out and gives me a little embrace.

"I will see you tomorrow, all right?" she asks me with a puzzled expression.

I tell her, "Yeah, of course," and I suppose I could say today was fruitful since I seem to have made a friend, even if I still do not know how Cody and Joey feel about me.

Joey is trailing a few feet behind me as I begin to make my way to my car, which is farther down the parking lot. Cody and Melissa get in the car at the same time. Despite his obvious nervousness and the fact that I have caught him glancing at me many times today, I have come to the realization that he has said absolutely nothing to me.

His shoulders tighten up even more from being so near to mine, so I ask him, "Why are you so tense?" as I slow down to match his speed.

He raised an eyebrow and said, "Since when am I anxious?"

I add, "Like the whole day." My laughter reveals my truth. He pounded me against the door while I retrieved the keys from my backpack and walked up to my car. His arm extended to grasp my neck.

My mouth drops open in astonishment as I watch his hazel eyes change to a brilliant electric blue. I try to release my hand by grabbing his arm, but his metal hold becomes even tighter the more I touch him. Removing my hand, I try to kick him, but his free hand catches my leg and throws it down.

Gasping for air, I ask, "What did I ever do to you?" His hold on my throat becomes even more suffocating, and I gasp for more.

He snarls into my ear, "Do not spread your filthy ass gayness on me," and then he removes his hand from mine and begins to go to his car, which is really a few rows down from mine.

As my throat aches and tears well up in my eyes, I yell at him, "It is not a fucking sickness, you asshole!" His voice makes him tremble even more, and I scream at him in response.

He yells, "Fuck you!" as he gets into his car and drives away, disappearing from my view.

My heart is still racing from the terror that man-that homophobe-inflicted, so I lock my car and lean my face on the wheel to calm down. After a few minutes of sitting there, I musters up the nerve to start my car and drive out of the parking lot. I will pretend to smile at my family's meal as I try to make sense of what just transpired.