Chapter 2

My morning classes passed in a horrifying blur.

The snickering and laughter from my classmates was bad enough, but it was the teachers who made everything worse. Two of them made me stand in the corner of the room, saying I wasn’t allowed to sit at my desk until I was ready to grow up. And another one gave me detention when I told her I couldn’t go get cleaned up when she ordered me to do so.

It was mortifying.

Only Mr. Davidson didn’t make a big deal out of it. Instead of drawing attention to my problem, which everyone in the school had been aware of at that point since it was the last period before lunch, he simply placed a towel down on my chair before jumping right into his lecture.

I was more grateful to him than I could ever show. Since he taught Advanced Sciences, most of the students in class were in my siblings years, which meant they would all go tattling to them if it looked like Mr. Davidson and I had a closer than average relationship. When he asked me to stay after to talk about punishments, I pretended to hang my head in fear.

My classmates continued to point and laugh, taunting me like they always did for being too young to be in this class, as they exited the room. As soon as the last one was out, Mr. Davidson closed and locked the door, lowering the small flap to block the window.

“Let’s see it,” he said, gesturing for me to join him at the front of the class. He opened a drawer as I came closer, pulling out a jar of crème. I knew better than to refuse, he would only get stubborn and moody if I did. I smiled, recalling the first time he made me show him my burned arm at the start of term.

“I’m not proud of that day either, Ayla,” Mr. Davidson said, shaking his head as a slight flush appeared on his cheeks. It made me giggle. “Please, can we not talk about that again.”

“Whatever you say, teach,” I said, making sure to keep my distance as I removed the wrap again on my arm. I tried to lean forward to grab the crème, but he picked it up instead. “Please, I don’t want to get near anyone until I clean up. I feel disgusting.”

Mr. Davidson, instead of listening, walked around his desk until he was right in front of me, gently lifting my arm. I flushed crimson, knowing he could smell it. Everyone over the age of sixteen in the school could smell it, with their enhanced senses.

“You forget that I have two children of my own,” he went on, carefully spreading the cream. It was heaven, both his gentle touch and the cooling relief that came with it. Closing my eyes, I fought hard to keep from making an embarrassing sound. Like any wolf, I craved to have contact like this with my own kind. However, no one was allowed to be near me apart from those who were anything but gentle. Moment’s like this were a precious gift from the Goddess.

Mr. Davidson ruined the moment, however, when he continued on. “I’ve been peed on more times than I can count, it’s practically normal for me.”

“That’s gross, sir,” I said playfully, gigging again a moment after. He and his mate had their second cub just last year, and he couldn’t be more pleased with himself.

“What can I say, Ayla,” he grinned, finishing up with my arm. “Being a parent is dirty business. I’m sure you will learn that firsthand someday, once you find your mate.”

My smile faded, both from the treatment being over, and from the words he said. No one knew apart from me, but I was pretty sure that I would never be allowed to find a mate. It wasn’t something I liked to think about, being a lone wolf my entire life, and so I shoved the thoughts aside just as fast as they appeared. A fake smile already on my face as I look up at him.

“Gross you might be, sir,” I teased as I started to rewrap my arm. “But you sure do know your medicines. I can barely feel it anymore, thank you.”

He took the wrap from my hands and refastened it himself. He didn’t say anything until he was done, his face serious again. I could see pity in his eyes and forced myself to look away.

“Don’t worry about me, teach,” I said playfully again, making for the door. “In less than two years I’ll be out of here. And thank you again, for this.” I lifted my arm at him.

“Just know that you can come to me anytime you need help, Ayla,” he said, beating me to the door. His hand shot out over my head, preventing me from opening it. I was all too aware of him, with how close it was. His scent was warm and calming, and his strength was very noticeable. He wasn’t just the Advanced Science’s teacher, he was also the Combat Training instructor and the Tactics and Warfare instructor. Other territories, rumor had it, had other ranking members in their packs. Gamma’s and Delta’s amongst them. I knew without knowing that, if our pack had those ranks as well, then Mr. Davidson would’ve been our Delta for sure.

Shaking my head, trying to clear his scent from my mind, I spoke in a soft voice. “I will not be the reason you and your family are forced to move to another Pack.”

“Ayla,” he growled, but I wasn’t having anymore of it. Jabbing my finger just above his elbow, his arm went limp just long enough for me to open the door and flee from the room. I half feared that he might chase after me, but breathed a sigh of relief when I made it safely to the girls bathroom.

Opening my bag once I was in a stall, I pulled out a fresh pair of sweatpants and underwear. This wasn’t the first time Misty or her friends did something to ruin my cloths during school, and so I always brought some spares. They took up extra space in my bag, but I was lucky enough to not have to carry my textbooks around anymore. Studying was one of the few things I could do to escape my reality, and so I spent most of my nights working ahead until exhaustion finally took hold of me.

Once I was cleaned up and changed, I washed my soiled cloths in the sink as best I could before putting them in a plastic bag I always had tucked away in my backpack. Ignoring the mirror, and the sad blue eyes I knew would be staring back at me, I picked up my bag and all but ran to the lunchroom.

I barely made it in time.