Huxley
I wasin my second class of the day when the whispers started about Ada Stephens.
“Did they just say Ada got hurt?” Mason asked me. I turned back to see who had said it. Was it that girl at the back? But when she said Ada’s name again, I knew I heard the same thing he did.
I had seen her earlier, before school. I was going to talk to her, well, try to. She hadn’t texted me last night. It wasn’t a big deal, I knew she went out for Noah’s birthday and I didn’t want to be one of those guys that messaged her to remind her that I was still here. I wanted her to have fun without having to think I was jealous that she was spending time with another guy.
Yeah… I was jealous, only because I still hadn’t asked her out on an actual date. I wanted to ask her to prom, but I hadn’t gained the courage for that either. Every time I saw her I lost all my words. Now I was worried Noah had asked her to prom last night and I messed it all up. I could scent the two of them in the hallway earlier. Something happened between them.
They were attracted to each other, it was obvious to all the shifters there. I just hoped that what Ada and I shared was strong enough. I knew she was attracted to me, I just hoped that I could talk to her more so she would know I felt the same way.
“Yeah, River just messaged me. Ada got hurt.”
I looked to Mason. Did he ask River? Those guys were so in tune with each other it was like they could talk through each other’s minds or something. Maybe it was a packmate thing… My dads didn’t have that though. They talked out loud… a lot.
As soon as class ended I tried to call Ada, She wasn’t at her locker and I was worried about her. Where was she? I didn’t even know what had happened, but for her not to be at her locker made me think it was bad. I saw some younger Kiba boys and I listened in to see if they knew anything. They didn’t say anything about Ada, they were talking about a Kiba party coming up next weekend. I knew I needed to find Lexi, she would know.
When I found her, I jogged down the hallway to where she was walking. I could sense River and Mason behind me. It felt good to have them care and back me up in case things went bad.
“Ah, Lexi.” She turned to me. “Hi. Um… is Ada okay? I tried calling her, but she didn’t answer.” Lexi, she was a pretty girl, long brown hair, and she just had this way about her that she looked delicate, but she was tougher than most would give her credit for. Hell, you would have to be tough as nails to date a vampire and, well… Ranger Lovell as well. I didn’t get it, but she loved him for who he was. And there was a big personality and everything else that came with Ranger.
“Oh, yeah, I think she’ll be fine. She hit her head pretty bad. Olivia started shit with me, and Ada… well, Olivia didn’t like what she had to say.”
My wolf rose to the surface. Olivia hurt my mate. She hurt Ada when she was defending her friend. I could hear the guys behind me telling me to keep control, but it was hard. I was angry and so was my wolf. He was itching to burst free and protect Ada.
“It’s okay, don’t… Fuck, don’t shift.”
I shook my head, trying to clear it. It was easier as time went on, I had pretty good control of my wolf. My wolf didn’t want to retreat, it just lingered there under the surface. Lexi wasn’t who hurt Ada, but she looked worried I would shift right here in the hallway. Well, I guess with Ranger as your mate that made sense. But I had better control than he did.
“I’m okay. Just, when it comes to Ada—”my mate, my wolf growled in my head, “—I don’t like seeing her get hurt is all.” My wolf was just as bad as the rest of the shifters that tried claiming Lexi as their mate. I couldn’t claim Ada as my mate without even speaking to her about it.
Lexi nodded, understanding me. It was surprisingly easy to talk to her. She knew what I was, and I wasn’t nervous like when I spoke to Ada. This was the first time I had really spoken to Lexi and she had helped me.Saved me.
“I also wanted to thank you for saving me. Twice.” I rubbed my fingers nervously on the scruffy chin hairs I didn’t shave today. This was hard, I wasn’t good at this, expressing myself.
“I tend to act before thinking, so you really saved me and I owe you my life. If there is anything you need, not that you would need something from me…. Ah, fuck. Yeah. Ranger’s coming. I should go.”
Ranger was pissed, I could feel the change in the air immediately. He really hated me and that was just on a regular day. Today, I was talking to his mate, so the tense change I felt of his wolf at the surface made mine rise, tense for a fight that didn’t need to be.
Lexi grabbed my arm to stop me from leaving. “Look, there’s something I need. Would you guys freeze Olivia out? Don’t look at her or speak to her. I hope this way she gets the idea that you don’t just go hurting other girls to get what you want. She might learn her lesson.”
I nodded but could think of a better lesson, like having her expelled. But she wouldn’t care about that. Lexi knew where to hit her, she was all about the shifter packs even though she didn’t know about us. It was the one thing we all had in common with each other. Olivia.
If we did this, she wouldn’t have two packs giving her attention. I wasn’t sure what Kenneally would do. They were still not happy that Kiba got Lexi, they still felt like it was unfair they couldn’t even try to date her, so there was still tension over that.
“Oh sorry—” she let go of my arm fast. It was a good move but Ranger had already seen. “Try calling Ada after school. I know she would love to hear from you. I don’t think she has a date for the prom…” she hinted. She turned away quickly and made her way to her mate. Ranger looked directly at me, he was so focused on me that he didn’t even sense Lexi had approached him.Fuck.
I knew talkingto Lexi wouldn’t go unpunished by Ranger. With my bag on my back, I was heading for the exit to go home and call Ada when he approached from the side.
“Hey, Fucksley. Woods in five.” He slammed his shoulder into mine and my wolf rose, growling a warning at him. I didn’t fight like this.Ever. I had never fought with Ranger before, so I wasn’t sure how this would go down. River had been in many fights over the years with Ranger, but today I needed to end this. He couldn’t act like this when someone talked to Lexi. It was ridiculous.
I followed him out to the woods behind the school. I wasn’t going to fight him, I wanted him to understand why I spoke to Lexi. He shouldn’t just be fighting anyone who spoke to her. I had no interest in her, he should know that by now. I thought I had been pretty clear since the start. I only had eyes for Ada. When he didn’t say anything in the small clearing, I thought I better get this over with, but my wolf was agitated with his.
“What’s your problem, Lovell? I didn’t touch your mate, she touched me, and I did as she said. Olivia is out. Didn’t you see what happened back there with your brother?”
Olivia had tried to flirt with Maverick and he acted like she was invisible. And it wasn’t just Kiba and Rawlins that did it. Every student in there acted like Olivia wasn’t there and didn’t exist. All of Rawlins agreed to it. Plus, this teasing of Ada had gone on long enough. We should have stopped this long ago, but I was a coward. They all agreed that Olivia was out.
“No, this is about Ada. Back off, she belongs to Noah and Saint. They’re gonna claim her, and you’re fucking with her head.”
