Claimed By The Predator

Ari's POV The bus hissed to a stop like it was sighing in relief after a long journey. I sat still for a moment, fingers curled around the fraying straps of my backpack, watching the other students rush out as if they couldn’t wait to disappear into this new world. My chest felt tight. Not from excitement—but from nerves. From the heavy knot of what ifs twisting behind my ribs. What if I got lost? What if I said the wrong thing? What if they looked at me the way people always did? With one shaky breath, I stood and followed them off the bus. The heat slapped me in the face the second I stepped down. The afternoon sun was blazing, cooking the concrete beneath my sneakers. I adjusted the hood of my oversized sweatshirt to keep my ears hidden and looked around. The campus was alive in a way that made my head spin. Students buzzed like bees, dragging suitcases, hugging old friends, laughing too loudly, shouting greetings across the quad. Everything felt bigger than me. Loude

Ari's POV The dorm room didn’t feel like mine. Not really. It was too clean, too quiet. The kind of silence that makes your ears ring and your thoughts way too loud. My bed was neatly made, the curtains fluttering slightly from the open window. I’d left it that way on purpose—hoping the breeze would make me feel a little less suffocated. It didn’t. I sank onto the mattress, knees pulled to my chest, trying to breathe through the heavy thing pressing down on me. First day on campus and already my instincts were screaming. But not from the usual overwhelming newness—no, this was deeper. Animal-deep. Something was watching me. Not just someone. Something. I’d felt it earlier. Like a gaze sliding along my spine, sharp and slow. Like claws brushing the inside of my skin. I’d told myself it was just nerves. That I was being ridiculous. But the chill in the air, the way my ears twitched constantly, the way my tail wouldn’t relax—it wasn’t just nerves. I rubbed my arms, suddenly aware

Ari’s POVI didn’t sleep. Not really. I laid there with my eyes shut, blankets pulled up to my chin, still wearing my socks like that would stop anything… or anyone… from crawling in.But my body was tired of lying, so I sat up when the sun smeared pale light across the window. My head throbbed, and my throat felt dry, but the rest of me just felt… heavy. The stone ledge outside my window caught the light for a second, and I glanced at it. Just stone. Ordinary. Nothing carved. Nothing suspicious. Nothing watching.I peeled myself out of bed like old tape off a box. My uniform hung on the back of the chair—same gray-white as everyone else's, except tailored for prey hybrids like me. Open tail slit. Space for my ears so they wouldn’t get flattened. Every detail screamed: you are different, but not safe.The halls outside were full of noise, doors opening, bodies moving, but none of them were mine. I didn’t know anyone. No one knew me. I hadn’t even seen my assigned roommate, and I was s

Ari's POVI woke up too early again.The room was dim, wrapped in blue-gray shadows that hadn’t been chased away by sunrise. I blinked up at the ceiling and just lay there, listening. No birds. No student chatter. Just the low hum of the walls, like the building was breathing.My chest ached with that same weight from yesterday, heavier now that I’d survived my first day.I hadn’t made any friends.I hadn’t even talked to anyone, not really.Just muttered “sorry” and “excuse me” a dozen times and tried not to get lost between buildings that all looked like predators built them. Which… they probably did.I turned my face into the pillow and breathed out slow. The room still smelled like new sheets, cardboard boxes, and lavender detergent I didn't remember packing. It didn’t smell like home.The silence scraped my nerves raw.I didn’t want to move.But my body had other ideas—my ears twitched, alert like they’d heard something my brain hadn’t. A whisper? No. A rustle maybe. Wind? My hea

Ari's POV There was something wrong with the air again. Not cold exactly, not warm either. Just… heavy. Thick in my lungs, like it was waiting for something. I opened the window for a moment, hoping it would help, but the breeze that touched my skin made my stomach twist. I shut it again. Tighter this time. Third day. I was supposed to be getting used to things by now. That’s what the student orientation video said—"By day three, the environment should feel less overwhelming!" I’d laughed when I watched it. Not out loud. Just that bitter kind of mental laugh that stays trapped behind your teeth. It didn’t feel better. If anything, it felt worse. I sat on the edge of my bed for way too long, fully dressed but unwilling to move. My bag was already packed, my schedule folded so many times the paper was soft at the creases. I knew today was another class-heavy day—two lectures, one studio. None of that scared me. But walking through the quad did. It was the looks. The glances.