Adopted Soldier

Alex was done changing into his P.E uniform, so he was waiting for Rachel to head towards the stairs. In truth, Alex wanted to check on her inside or even just at the entrance of the locker room, but he felt that action might make Rachel uncomfortable. So the compromise Alex could make was to wait for Rachel at the stairs.

When Rachel was walking down the stairs she saw Alex waiting for her. Rachel was already somehow used to his actions. Even though they just met yesterday based on past examples she was sure Alex would do something like this. She even thought Alex would barge into the girls' locker room.

"So Alex where is your new friend Oliver?" Rachel asked Alex as she walked pass by him. Alex followed Rachel and was walking right beside her.

"He left telling me that being a third wheel was not his style. He also told me to enjoy my youth." Hearing the reason why Oliver wasn't with Alex surprised Rachel. 'So that guy does have some sense to him.'

When the two reached the school field together, a bunch of students still couldn't get used to the idea that the Goddess of their class was with someone, especially someone who just recently transferred. Rachel herself didn't bother explaining that Alex wasn't her boyfriend but just a friend, she did this so that people confessing to her will lessen or better yet entirely stop.

The P.E teacher who saw everyone was already gathered decided to make the class run five laps under the scorching heat.

When the class started running, Oliver was at the head of the pack with his superior athletic ability. Alex, on the other hand, was jogging at a leisurely pace right beside Rachel. Since Alex was taller than Rachel he was able to block the harmful rays of the sun from reaching Rachel, he became Rachel's shade.

Obviously, Rachel noticed this kind gesture of Alex and was once more reminded of how much Alex cared for her. 'Why does he care for me this much? Didn't we just meet yesterday, and it wasn't even a romantic meeting, it was a bad start...'

"Hey, Alex what do you think you're doing?" Rachel asked Alex while continuing to run.

"What do you mean?" Alex asked genuinely confused at the question.

"You could've easily caught up with Oliver at the front, but you're deliberately slowing your pace to match mine. Why are you doing that?"

"Well, I'm protecting you from the UV rays of the sun."

"Why do you need to protect me? Look at everybody else they don't need someone to block the UV rays for them. How am I any different from them that I need you to block the sun's UV rays?" Rachel asked with a bit of irritation at the end.

"They're them, and you're you. To me you are special, you're someone I must protect." As Alex responded to Rachel's question, he suddenly thought. 'Was that alright? I didn't really say anything about it being my mission, it will seem like it was just my desire to protect her... Ok, I guess I'm safe.'

Rachel, on the other hand, was blushing, she doesn't know how many times she had blush ever since meeting Alex. She just couldn't help it, this guy who looks like he has zero idea about girls or dating one would always successfully deliver a surprise attack. He would always say the most unexpected thing at the worse timing.

Rachel just continued jogging without saying another word. As she jogged beside Alex she felt a sense of comfort and security. Alex's body was not big nor was he too tall, yet to Rachel, the man jogging right beside her at this very moment look like he could shield her from everything. She smiled at the sense of comfort she felt.

The two silently continued their jogging, the students who heard their conversation could practically see the pink atmosphere the two created.

The boys who liked Rachel had now truly lost. Their Goddess since the start had been blushing and smiling as she stood by the transfer student... By Alexander's side. They who had tried to make her smile had ultimately failed, and it was only Alexander that was able to achieve it.

....

When the group was done running, the P.E teacher gave them free time. The boys invited Alex to play Basketball with them, but Alex declined. Firstly he needed to protect Rachel and right now she was tired from running, making her more vulnerable at the moment. Lastly, Alex didn't know how to play Basketball, he would only be a liability to any team he joined.

The group of boys misunderstood this as Alex just wanting to have some alone time with his girlfriend. The group of boys approached Oliver and asked him instead. Oliver looked at Alex and Rachel's direction, he gave the two a thumbs up and smiled. Rachel also misunderstood Alex's actions as him wanting to spend more time with her.

Rachel sat at a shade of the tree near the school field, Alex followed after her like a loyal dog. The two sat down side by side. There were no words only silence as a gentle breeze blew by, the two simply looked at their classmates play happily. Some of the girls who noticed the two felt a bit giddy seeing the two so close to each other, It was as if they had a world of their own.

The silence continued for a while before Alex spoke. "It's so peaceful." "Why did you suddenly say that?" Rachel asked Alex interested why he would say such a line at this moment.

Alex was caught by surprise by another of Rachel's questions. "Nothing it's just that sitting here with you watching the clouds while looking at our classmates having fun feels really peaceful to me." Alex didn't look at Rachel trying to avoid her gaze as he continued looking at the clouds. He averted his gaze because he was afraid Rachel might notice something suspicious.

Hearing Alex's answer and the way he continued to look at the clouds made her think that it really was peaceful.