(Jaxon)
The tension didn't go away.
It came tumbling on top of me like a tonne of bricks had been thrown from a high altitude. Like a change in wind, a heavy tension and a frigid atmosphere had completely settled over Jasper Falls High School the next morning. As soon as you crossed over the threshold of the school gates, you could feel the weight of it pushing down as though a demon were perched on your shoulder.
Even the weather seemed to reflect the frigid air at the school. A cold wind blowing through the trees, ruffling the leaves, sending an uneasy chill up my spine. It seemed as though every student at Jasper Falls High- werewolf and human- had sensed the changed as a quiet hush descended upon the halls. Everyone spoke in soft tones almost as though they were afraid to disturb a smooth transition.
Except, Black Rock wolves knew that it would be anything but smooth and quiet.
But there was nothing we could do except lie in wait for the Blackwater hounds to pounce. Every student was caught up in the novelty of seeing new faces, and it seemed as though the school had been divided into two groups. Boys took to one corner, silently seething over the attention those new students received since most of them were male students. The girls gathered in groups to gossip about said students or scrutinize the few female Blackwater wolves.
"Is the tension always like this?" Tucker asked, finally coming to stand next to Asher and me. We were at Asher's locker, and since we had English first period this morning, I decided to escort my gorgeous mate.
Tucker had shown up at school with a typical novel-worthy bad-boy persona. Then again, it was naturally the aura he held aside from dominating and creepily smart. He had shown up dressed in black, head-to-toe, leather jacket; ears full of silver hoops and crossbones and his fingers each sporting a ring. To top it off, he drove into the compound on his sleek, black power cruiser immediately catching attention.
Evidently, the tension he referred to was not the silent killer air that had unknowingly settled.
Asher shook his head. "No. You guys are just show-offs. Sure, there was some 'Oohing' and 'Aahing' when Black Rock showed up but none of them showed up on a bike." he pointed out making me snicker and nod my head.
"I swear." Tucker began, ruffling the front of his silky black hair. I rolled my eyes in annoyance when I caught some girls staring at him with hearts in their eyes, and I swear a girl tripped over her feet when Tucker glanced in her direction. "It took me nearly twenty minutes to escape the crowd of girls who swarmed around my bike just now." he exclaimed as though he couldn't believe it happened.
But I knew Tucker Corbin and I didn't miss the mischievous twinkle in his gray gaze as he said this. He was relishing the attention, and the fact that ninety percent of the school population had eyes on him. Boys were envious of the attention girls were paying him.
Well...those of them who weren't werewolves with mates.
"Then don't show up looking like a Rockstar." someone said from somewhere behind Tucker. Asher and I craned our necks to see the person and Tucker glanced over his shoulder just as Jason's head popped up.
"Now that is how you dress for school." Asher pointed out, motioning to Jason's sloppy attire which consisted of dark blue track sweats with two green stripes running down the sides, and a gray sweater with flip flops.
"He literally looks like he just rolled out of bed. Look," Tucker argued, motioning to Jason's ruffled dark hair, "I bet he didn't even comb that bush."
Jason scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Why should I look all fancy to come sit through torturous hour long lectures while my butt itches? When I can come here in comfort so when I go home, it's just easier to roll back up into my blanket." Jason grinned, moving his arms in a rolling motion.
Tucker then bristled; his gaze narrowed on the fourth-in-command wolf. "I knew it! Did you even brush your teeth this morning?"
"I'm not kissing anyone today." Jason retorted, arching an eyebrow. I noticed my mate grimace slightly at Jason's little disgusting hygiene fact.
"And if you find your mate?" I queried.
"Then I'll start brushing my teeth, shaving my balls and armpits." he informed, acting out each one with a few hands movements.
"Filthy child." Tucker muttered under his breath just as someone ducked into the gap between him and Jason, looking all frantic and huffing as though the hounds of hell were set free on him. "Lance?" Tucker called, arching an eyebrow as he looked down at the shorter boy.
He was a dominant too, but his father had allied himself with Tobias. His father was Lyle; Tobias' beta and if there's one thing to know about Lance; he hated his father. To be honest, no one really knew why Lance had stuck around after that first raid. Black Rock wasn't the only pack that lost a lot of people. Many Blackwater wolves either died or fled the pack; Lance's mom being one of the few who fled.
He was slightly shorter than Jason with light chocolate hair that was forever unkempt, some dipping below his forehead and hiding away strikingly bright caramel eyes. Glancing over to where Asher stood, I cleared my throat in irritation. My mate shook his head tearing his gaze away from Lance and focusing on me once more, giving an innocent grin.
"Oh right..." Asher mutter, stepping a little closer to me. I rolled my eyes at this.
"Do not move!" Lance whispered sharply finally having retained oxygen; his expression twisted into one of pure terror. "The girls won't leave me alone. I didn't know freshman girls could be so scary." he cried, shutting his eyes tightly for a moment before reopening them. His face was flushed, making his already tanned skinned look darker, and he looked straight-up terrified.
"Why are you bothering younger girls, Lance?" Jason interrogated. Said person only shook his head vigorously, gasping softly and immediately turning to face Tucker so his back was to the rest of the corridor. A group of girls passed by; their voices higher than usual as they chatted excitedly amongst themselves.
"I wasn't! They just started following after me! I shouldn't have come here." he cried once the group passed by.
"Oh, you'll be fine. Give it a week before they find another boy to crush on." my mate spoke up, his voice calm and reassuring as he held a hand out to Lance. "I'm Asher, by the way."
They exchanged pleasantries and for a moment, the frigid tension was forgotten. I just couldn't understand where Lance really stood. He loved his mother, and so I had assumed up until that first raid. She fled, even begging him to come with her just to get away from Lyle.
And yet, he refused.
The frigid tension returned however, a moment later, when Teddy walked through the doors of the junior locker wing. Given his advanced healing abilities as a werewolf, he suffered no swelling on his face this morning, but it was covered in lovely shades of blue, purple and red; his nose covered with a band-aid from where B had broken it. Several students turned to whisper and gawk, but no one made an attempt to point. He gave off killer vibes that everyone seemed to sense.
As he walked down the corridor, his eyes scanned the halls probably looking for Bennett. But good luck pal, because you won't be seeing him any time soon. Starting effective today, B was receiving treatment for his addictions, his violent tendencies and apparently, I had recently come to learn that B suffered from night terrors.
That bit of information had stunned me speechless and I hated myself for being such a dick friend. Here I was, getting many peaceful nights of sleep because of the pills my therapist had prescribed me while my best friend barely caught a full night's sleep. Night terrors were so much worse from what I'd researched.
It made me wonder just what could have happened to him that he sometimes couldn't tell the difference between a bad dream and reality. And after witnessing his pure rage last night at the banquet, it made my hatred of Teddy and Davin grow tenfold. I had a strong inkling that those two were directly tied to B's night terrors.
It was the only thing that made sense. Not only had he grown extremely withdrawn in the last year- even though B had always been the reserved type- but when Blackwater had found us after five months, I had noticed that B's anger grew magnanimously whenever Teddy and Davin were mentioned. Even though Tobias had led the raid, B didn't appear that bothered by him.
I just wished B would trust me enough to talk to me about it. But who am I kidding? I'd abandoned him for an entire year when it was obvious he needed me. I wouldn't trust me either.
The bell rang just then, pulling me away from my string of depressing thoughts. That was our cue to part ways, Jason waving slightly while tugging along an unwilling Lance. He was obviously still shaken by the idea of being chased around by a bunch of girls. But what can I say? Jasper Falls was a relatively small town- more like a small city- with only one high school. This year must have been a blessing for the human populace of the school to have new students enrol, not once, but twice.
"You really need to get over your gynophobia." Jason muttered as he passed by practically dragging Lance with him.
"I-It's not a phobia...they just...t-they scare me." Lance returned, a stuttering, uneasy mess. Jason only huffed expressing his frustration over the issue. When my mate looked back to me with questioning eyebrows having heard that small exchange, I simply shrugged my shoulders. I couldn't give him an answer to Lance's 'girl-phobia' since I had no idea what made him like that.
"Well, I better get going." Tucker said drawing our attention to him. He had a thoughtful expression on his face accompanied by a slight grin. "Don't wanna be late for my first class..." his grin grew then, and his eyes were suddenly set ablaze with an idea that had me shaking my head, "or maybe I should be late. Make an impression."
I cannot believe this vain idiot was gunning for Blackwater's alpha throne.
"Yeah...I'll do that. Nothing is more satisfying than walking into a room full of people and they suddenly get too stupid to form coherent thoughts." he agreed, dismissing us with a wave of his hand and a confident smirk.
Ugh! Cocky bastard!
Asher and I turned, watching as Tucker confidently swaggered down the corridor and disappeared around a corner, no doubt, heading to the senior locker wing since he was a year ahead of us.
"Shall we get back to our lives, then?" Asher suggested, even though it came out as a question. I nodded and we headed to our first class together in an attempt to temporarily forget the brewing tension.
The tension wouldn't go away because inevitably, we knew, we would have some classes with those guys from Blackwater. And even if we were lucky enough not to, we would still see them around campus and town. It would always be there like an elephant in the room unless we chose to do something about it.
But until then, everyone was just waiting with baited breaths for the scale to tip.
And then, all hell would break lose.
**
By the time lunch had rolled around, I couldn't help but roll my eyes in distaste. I wasn't the only one harbouring these feelings. While the entire school was still divided into two; boys having been shoved into the corner and girls fawned and went gaga over the new male students, there was more going on.
Tucker, Zain, and Jason had quickly faded into the background. Despite it being a difficult task to accomplish given that students were still overjoyed with their presence as newbies, they kept their heads down and kept mostly to themselves. Being as astute as they were, they had quickly singled out who to avoid and who was safe enough to approach. It all aided in their peaceful transition and they had settled in quite nicely.
Lance followed suit, and I noticed he'd been stuck to Jason's side like glue all day. Part of the reason had to do with his 'girl-phobia' and the larger part dealt with Teddy's glares that were directed at him. It appeared apparent to me that Lance was using Jason as a shield and the dominant didn't seem to mind. In fact, he let Lance do whatever he needed to feel safe, even if it meant letting him cower behind him.
What truly irked us however, and Jace in particular, was seeing how Teddy and Davin followed the popularity route. They had spent most of the morning chatting up and seducing the popular crowd and like flies to a carcass, those pea-brained idiots flocked to Teddy and Davin. They had been successful because they had been invited to the popular table during lunch.
Asher and I had retreated to the tables outside where we normally sat. We didn't go alone though, having been joined by the little freshman my mate had taken a strong liking to. I remembered how Asher would go on a tirade whenever he started talking about the little freshman, and at one point he was adamant that once he turned eighteen, he was going to adopt Syl. He said he didn't care about the two-year difference. Syl was the little brother he wished for and he needed to protect him. He went so far as to say that his parents wouldn't mind having another child, even if they had to kidnap him from his parents.
And knowing the Stone's, they truly wouldn't mind. Marissa would probably gush over Syl, and Rick would no doubt spoil him rotten. It was only natural. A boy as fragile and cute as Syl wasn't meant to be bullied or made to work. He was meant to be spoiled by his family and friends and if ever he found one, his lover. He was like a delicate little flower you felt an innate urge to keep safe and shelter.
"There any new students in your year?" Asher asked, biting into his apple. Syl gave a shy smile, his head lowered as he poked at his homemade spaghetti and meatballs lunch.
"One or two." Syl replied. That was another thing I had noticed. Because he had spent a lot of time being victimized by not only kids in his own year group, but by idiot juniors and seniors who found it cool to knock around a small freshman, he naturally lacked confidence. But ever since he'd started hanging out with Asher and the crew, myself included, he'd grown a tad bit confident. He rarely stuttered now, only when in the face of people with dominating auras. And hopefully with time, that would disappear as well.
"Made friends with them?" my mate prodded. Syl shook his head shyly.
"No...they...they don't seem very nice."
Well, I mean...they are from Blackwater. So, that's saying something.
"What makes you think that? Did they say something to you?" I interrogated. My mate was rubbing off on me, and I hadn't just found myself looking out for the little freshman. I'd grown to care for him, too.
And the idea of snobby little punks bullying Syl didn't sit well with me. Especially if they were from Blackwater and their parents had allied themselves with Tobias.
Ah, Asher Stone. How you have turned my life around will always be a mystery to me. But he managed to do just that.
"No, no. It's just...they've already made friends with Ethan and his gang."
"Is that the punk who was bullying you?" Asher questioned, a miffed expression on his face. Syl gave a small nod, taking little bites of his lunch.
"Yeah...so, I don't want to talk to them if they are going to treat me like Ethan does."
When Syl said that, I felt a sense of protectiveness rise up in me, and the words were out of my mouth before I could stop it. "Syl. If they ever mess with you, especially those two new kids, let me know and I'll deal with them. Okay." I said, my own words shocking me slightly.
Syl seemed shocked too, his big brown eyes staring at me as if he couldn't comprehend my words. Asher took them into stride, reassuring Syl to simply not worry about the sharpness of my tone.
I wasn't kidding though. I had a general dislike for Blackwater except those within the pack I personally trusted. And speak of the devil, he showed up in the nick of time as if he had somehow sensed I'd been thinking about him.
His height turned heads as he walked out of the adjoining cafeteria building and onto the lawn. Pretty much everyone had been staring at him, and I just knew the bastard was loving the attention, even if he didn't grin about it, you sure could see the smugness in his eyes as he held his head high, his very presence demanding respect and screamed 'look at me!'
Tucker plopped his tray down on our table taking the seat next to Syl, opposite Asher and I. His tray was overloaded with every damn thing the cafeteria had to eat and I didn't bother hiding my disgust when I saw exactly what he had on it. The only thought that came to mind was how much his lunch bill came up to.
Tucker then for a second, ignored Asher and my existence as he turned to face Syl, the freshman blushing scarlet at the sudden attention. The dominant cracked a grin- one I was too familiar with and had seen one to many times- as he held a hand out to Syl.
"I'm Tucker. What's your name?" he asked, and I watched with narrowed eyes, their exchange. Asher noticed my expression and from the corner of my eye, I saw him giving me a quizzical stare.
"S-Sylvester." the freshman replied, tentatively extending his hand. He kept his head lowered, platinum blonde bangs falling into his eyes, but the moment Syl placed his hand in Tucker's, his head shot up. Their eyes locked and it seemed as though they were telepathically communicating. Frowning, I glanced over at Tucker. His expression was mainly neutral, save for the slight tug at the corner of his mouth.
Syl then shook his head, quickly retreating his hand. "B-But everyone calls me Syl." he added quickly. My gaze lingered on Tucker, my frown deepening when I realized he still had his hand outstretched. His eyes flickered between his outstretched palm and the small human boy.
"Cute." Tucker then replied with a chuckle, his gaze lingering on Syl a moment too long. There was also his tone which somehow I felt, he was trying to say something else. "Are you single?" Tucker shot at Syl no less than a second later, making my eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets.
Way to be blunt! Oh my god! This man-whore!
I felt the air beside me stir and I already knew Asher had bristled at the sudden question, his hamburger hanging in mid-air on its track to his mouth. Syl kept his head down, blushing every shade of red from the tips of his ears down to his neck as he peeked up at the dominant through his hair.
Syl opened his mouth to reply but I beat it to him.
"That's beside the point! He is fifteen." I spat, narrowing my eyes at Tucker who grinned. He held his hands up in surrender.
"Hasn't stopped me before." Tucker returned.
"You're legal now, bastard." I argued but he only shot me a knowing grin accompanied by a smug stare. "That doesn't change anything. He's still technically a baby."
"At least I had the courtesy to ask if he's available, didn't I?" Tucker shot back smugly.
"Over my dead body!" Asher all but shouted, his tone holding a sharpness to it that dared anyone to oppose him as he pinned the dominant with a heated glare. "You'll have to wait until I am good and dead, no less than three years of complete decomposition before you think about touching my little Syl."
Tucker didn't get the chance to reply as we were immediately distracted by a bickering pair that was surely drawing closer to our table. When we glanced over to the familiar voices, it was no surprise to find Jason steering Lance toward our table while Zain trotted behind clearly amused with their argument.
"You're going to have to make friends at some point, you know?" Jason was saying.
"Why with girls? You know they scare me. What's wrong with the friends I have now?" Lance shot back, plopping down onto the space next to Asher. Since Syl was tiny, Jason thought it would be okay to shove Zain around effectively squashing the tiny human up against Tucker. And while the dominant didn't particularly seem to mind, he managed to sense that Syl was uncomfortable.
"Jason, get your ass on the other side." Tucker barked, making the other boy grunt. But he obeyed nonetheless as he came and pushed Lance around. It ended up with both Jason and I sitting on the very edges of the bench with the two in the middle sitting in extreme comfort until Asher realized the amount of space. He scooted closer to Lance and pulled me closer.
Oh how I loved him!
"If you want Teddy to stop with his death glares, make some friends who aren't us. I don't know about you, but the more that bastard glares at us, I swear I'm beginning to see it in my dreams." Jason returned, expression illustrating his perfect distaste.
"Why does it have to be girls? Why can't I make friends with guys?"
"Lan, think of this as an opportunity to overcome your ridiculous phobia." Jason urged, patting Lance on the back in a reassuring manner. Lance then huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. Asher was staring at the two in amusement, Zain looked bored since I'm guessing he'd borne witness to it multiple times. Tucker rolled his eyes, while Syl quietly looked on.
"It's not a phobia. Girls make me uncomfortable. I don't see why guys go crazy over them."
"Maybe you should sleep with one." Tucker suggested, a grin splitting his face. I noticed Syl's expression fall and I tried to ignore it. I had pretty much figured out what was going on from the knowing glance Tucker had shot me earlier when they shook hands and I guess it was just the protective side of me rearing its ugly head.
"I'd rather fuck a dog." Lance retorted.
"Girls aren't that bad." Asher said, arching an eyebrow at Lance.
"Yeah." Tucker then spoke up. "It's not like you have mommy issues which is a main factor that triggers gynophobia." Lance then expelled a heated breath, closing his eyes for a moment as if reigning in his anger.
"For the last time, it is not a phobia. I can talk to girls no problem. I just don't want to get too close to them." Lance tried to explain getting frustrated with us. He huffed, glaring at Tucker who only shook his head.
"Calm down. We'll leave it alone." he said, and Lance barked out a frustrated 'thank you.'
Now that they were finished teasing and poking fun at the guy for his girl-phobia, minor conversations and discussions broke out between the seven of us. Since Lance hadn't attended the gala last night, most of the conversations were directed at and involved him.
Of course, we kept it cryptic given that there was a human seated among us. We'd simply referred to the gala as a party.
When Asher had asked how come he didn't show up, Lance had simply explained that if he could get rid of his father for a few hours, he'd jump at the opportunity. It didn't take a genius to know that Lance did not have a good relationship with his father.
When Blackwater had moved into my hometown, I was about nine years old. The first time I'd met Lance, it was at the park in our town. Bennett, Bentley and I were there when we'd noticed Lance sitting in a secluded corner. We were concerned and had gone over to check on him. By that time, Lance was already facing physical abuse because he chose to stand up for his mother. Over the years, we saw what that abuse did to him and we realized that the beatings got worse. We had threatened to involve authorities and even their alpha and ours, but Lance begged us not to. He was afraid of what his father might do to his mother.
If you had only met him, you'd never guess he dealt with so much. But ever since that first raid, his mother took the opportunity to flee. She tried to take Lance with her, but he refused to go. And it appeared he'd somehow managed to avoid or cope with the abuse.
"Your mom went back to her hometown." I spoke up since we were currently on the topic of Lance's home life. "Why don't you leave and go with her?" I queried, truly confused about his decision to stay behind and face such abuse. The table had gone quiet, everyone looking down at their lunch, expect myself, Asher, Syl and Jason. He was quiet for a moment, poking at the half-eaten pudding on his tray before he looked up.
He gave us a small grin. "I intend to. But I have something I need to do here, first."
"You should forget about it and leave." Tucker spoke up, and this confused me. I had no idea what they were talking about, but from the identical expressions Tucker, Zain and Jason carried, I guess they knew.
"I've learned to control my anger and exercise patience. I'm just waiting for the right time." Lance replied.
"The right time for what?"
"The right time for what?"
Asher asked. But he wasn't the only one who had asked that question.
How did we not see or hear him sneaking up on us?
"Get lost, Teddy. No one was speaking to you." Tucker shot back. His expression was stern and voice firm. It left no room for argument or disobedience. Turning my head ever so slightly, I glanced up at Teddy as he came to stand on the side of the table, between Zain and Jason. My hand inched closer to my mate, easily gripping onto his knee.
I didn't trust that asshole to come within five yards of mate. After witnessing twice, that just his presence sent B into a raging fit, I'd take my chances and keep my mate as far away.
"I could say the same to you." Teddy fired. Tucker's expression was neutral, almost as if he expected that kind of response, and given to whom he was speaking, it wouldn't come as a surprise that Tucker dealt with Teddy's disobedience on a daily basis. "Besides, I was talking to Lance." he continued, dismissing his focus on the previous person and just ignoring the rest of us.
Teddy crossed his arms over his chest, a malicious smirk splitting his face. Despite his face being so badly bruised, it did nothing to diminish just how evil he looked right about now. "Not going to answer me?"
Lance didn't spare him a glance as he continued to eat his lunch. "I wasn't talking to you. Leave me alone, Teddy. You can't hurt me anymore."
When those words were said, a dangerous type of humour flooded Teddy's gaze and I didn't know which I was more alert about. The fact that Teddy was deriving some twisted satisfaction out of provoking Lance, or that he was not more than a few feet away from the one thing that meant the most to me. Unconsciously, my hand tightened around Asher's knee and he flitted his gaze toward me.
Since our hands were under the table, they couldn't see it when he slid his over mine, rubbing caressing circles on the back of my hand. That small act of comfort sent small sparks rushing up my arm that slowly spread throughout my chest. It didn't dispel the sense of foreboding I felt watching Lance and Teddy communicate, but it did clear my mind and I had a calm approach to what was playing out in front of me.
"Oh? Is that so? I don't think your dad would be too happy. Don't you remember what happened last time?" Teddy shot back, and there was a thudding sound.
My head snapped to the side searching for Lance's response. He'd gone still, as did Zain and Tucker. Asher was glaring at Teddy; Syl was clearly frightened. Jason was the one who had stood up, his jaw and fists clenched as if he were about to punch the asshole.
"What part of English don't you understand? He said to leave him alone." Jason gritted. Teddy was glaring heatedly at him and I could sense a brewing fight. I was ready for it, unconsciously pulling Asher closer to me. "Or is your head stuck so far up Tobias' ass you've gone deaf, too?"
That seemed to do it as Teddy retaliated, harshly shoving Jason back. "Fuck you, dumb bitch!"
Jason smirked. "I see you're talking about yourself again, you vain fuck!"
Teddy retaliated, slamming his fist into Jason's jaw. Sharp curses erupted from around the table as I moved back, pulling Asher up with me. Lance scrambled off the bench as well just as Jason countered with an upper cut that sent Teddy stumbling back. He recovered quickly though, swinging a leg out and catching Jason in the knee. Teddy swung his fist in an upper cut that made Jason stumble back a moment before he slammed him down onto the table.
"Shit!" Tucker and Zain cussed, simultaneously flying off the bench. Tucker pulled Syl up and tucked the small human boy safely behind him. The second my mate's eyes landed on the human boy; he went over, protectively taking him into his arms.
Zain moved forward in an attempt to pull Teddy away, but it seemed as though that was the moment the scales had tipped. Don't ask me from where they came or how they knew, but it looked, in that moment, like the hounds of hell had been unleashed onto the outside lunch spot.
I have no idea from where the guys of the popular clique appeared, including Brent Harper and his hooligans. But they just did apparently being led by Zain's asshole twin. They came pouncing upon us and as if that wasn't enough, Dale, Carter, Sky and Jace followed suit intervening with the sole purpose of breaking a part this fight.
They were doing a fairly alright job...
Actually, I don't really know because I was too busy beating the living shit out of Brent Harper for daring to touch my mate. The last time I saw Asher, I had pushed him away and he'd been comforting a ruffled, petrified-looking Syl. The human had accidentally gotten trampled on and despite his best efforts to slip away from the madness, one of those hooligans wouldn't leave him be. Tucker lost it and was beating the guy into a pulp.
"Enough!" an authoritative voice shouted with enough power in it to have us all frozen mid-movement. Glancing past Brent who had managed to get the upper hand on me, I realized it was the principal, Mr. Dalton.
He was not only our school's principal, but also the beta of Crescent Hill. He was a menacing-looking man in his forties who stood tall and dominating. Slicked back dark hair and intense eyes that would make a rebel piss his pants, Mr. Dalton looked more like a mob boss than a high school principal in his well-pressed suit. I noticed following behind him was the vice-principal and the head P.E. coach. Trailing them and standing a part from the crowd of students that had gathered were Sasha and Laken.
No doubt in my mind it was those two who had called Mr. Dalton.
"Get off of each other, now!" Mr. Dalton barked, casting a menacing glower over each of us. We did as told, and I shoved Brent off me and I immediately went over to where Asher and Syl stood off to the side, the human still encased in my mate's embrace. Mr. Dalton then settled his piercing gaze on something to my left. Curious, we all looked in that direction to find Blake scratching at his shoulder and watching everywhere but at the principal.
"You'll all spend the rest of the school day in the gymnasium in detention. The vice principal will supervise you until I get there to deal with this. You should all use that time to reflect on the mess you caused." he instructed, his gaze landing on Syl very suddenly. He frowned but didn't say anything. "Well! Get going, all of you!" he barked, propelling us forward.
"Not you, Blake. A word." Mr. Dalton instructed just as his son tried to slip past him. I heard Blake let out a sharp curse as he slumped his shoulders in defeat and stood skittishly next to his father.
**
No one really wanted anything to do with each other. Once we had gotten to the gymnasium, the vice principal had entered with the P.E. coach bringing in a chair for her. Now she sat, her back straight and her eyes glued to our movements.
No one spoke either. We had pretty much taken up the entire bleachers. I sat next to Asher, and Syl on his right. The human sat twiddling his thumbs and scuffing his sneakers, chewing his lips with his head hung. He was nervous and it was obvious he'd never gotten into trouble like this.
But out of everyone in the gymnasium, he was probably the only innocent soul.
There was a lot of room on the bleachers and it was because no one sat close together. The only groups comprised of the guys from Marcana in one corner further down the bleachers, Tucker, Zain, Jason and Lance in another on the opposite end; and Asher, me, and Syl. I think we were all taking this time to reflect on our mistakes.
The door to gymnasium opened a few minutes later and the principal entered with Blake in tow. He motioned for his son to grab a seat, and the boy did as told coming to sit next to Syl. Mr. Dalton was silent for a moment, his eyes moving over all of us before he paced back and forth and ran his hand through his hair.
Disappointment leaked out of him like a fire hydrant.
"I'm afraid to ask the cause of this fight. The last time a fight occurred that resulted in suspension was when two juniors were fighting over my daughter." As if on cue, everyone turned to look at Carter who huffed and tried to make himself disappear by using Jace as a shield. "Our junior year students is the largest class this school has ever seen and they're a troublesome bunch. Now we have seniors and freshman getting mixed up in junior students' drama."
"With all due respect, Mr. Dalton, the freshman's innocent." Asher spoke up, ignoring the firm stare the principal shot him at being interrupted. Mr. Dalton didn't say anything in response as though he were waiting for him to continue.
"Syl didn't actually participate in the fight. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and got trampled on. I mean look at him. Does he look like the type to go looking for fights?" Asher continued. Mr. Dalton glanced at Syl for a moment before expelling a breath.
"I guess so." he murmured before settling his gaze on someone behind us. "Corbin? What's your alibi?"
"Oh no, I'm guilty. I'll do my time." Tucker retorted, and I could hear the smirk in his voice.
Mr. Dalton shook his head. "Sylvester." he called, his voice temporarily losing it's harshness as he looked to the small human squashed between my mate and Blake. "Go back to class. Let the VP give you a pass." he ordered gently, and the human nodded. Syl went over to the vice principal as she quickly scribbled something on a paper and handed it to him.
"I have half a mind to suspend you all for the day. But I won't do that seeing as a fight of this magnitude hasn't happened before. I will let you off with a warning. Disrupt my school again and there will be severe repercussions. All of you, get back to your classes. And Blake, you're grounded for a week!" Mr. Dalton said.
"No!" Blake screeched as we started to leave. "You can't. Mom won't agree." he tried arguing. Mr. Dalton arched an amused eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest as students began leaving the gymnasium. Blake was now standing next to his father, practically begging.
"She will when I talk to her." Mr. Dalton shot back, eyeing his son in an unimpressed manner. Asher and I exchanged amused glances as we shuffled out of the gymnasium and toward the last class of the day.
Glancing over to my mate, I had the strongest of urges to hold him in my arms. Ever since Blackwater's arrival, there has been a sour taste in my mouth. That pack was bad news and a misfortune to Black Rock. It would continue to be that way unless a new alpha was crowned.
I returned a smile of my own when Asher caught me staring at him. His smile was so sweet, and it seemed to magically vanquish any negative thought that flitted through my mind. But as sweet as his smile was, it couldn't vanquish the feeling of dread that had settled in the pit of my stomach.
Something was coming.
I just knew it. And a large part of me knew that it had something to do with Asher.
But this time would be different. If Blackwater wanted my mate, they would have to pry him from my rotting corpse.
I had learned my lesson well the first time.
I'll never let history repeat itself.