Chapter 10

Aliyah's POV

My eyelids fluttered open to the bright fluorescent lights and the faint beep of a monitor. The room smelled like antiseptic, the smell was so strong that I had to wrinkle my nose a bit.

My head was throbbing like crazy and I could still feel the dizziness from last night.

"Where am I?" The words came out throaty and weak.

"Aliyah!" Kelly cried out. "Oh thank the goddess, you're awake!" Her face popped into view and was contorted in a worried expression.

"Hey, Ali." Becca was calmer as usual. She squeezed my hand gently. "You're in the pack hospital. You scared the crap out of us."

Kelly removed a stray strand of hair from my face, her eyes were soft with relief. "Yeah, girl. You were dizzy and light headed and your legs were weak like jelly, you couldn't stand on your own."

The fragments of last night started coming together: the party, Jude's creepy smile, the spiked drink, Kelly's intervention.... and then Professor Tyler.

"Jude.... he...."

"Drugged you," Kelly finished bluntly, her face was hardened. "Yeah, we know. The pack doctor ran tests. It was some kind of sedative mixed with wolfsbane extract. It's a strong one, meant to knock out your wolf senses and make you weak as fuck. The doctor said you were lucky we brought you in that time or it would have been more complicated."

Becca nodded in agreement. "It was real chaos after you blacked out. Professor Deville.... the new one.... showed up like some kind of dark hero."

"Did he go confront Jude?" I asked silently. I know I heard Tyler's angry voice asking for the culprit before I blacked out.

"Of course, he did. Why else do you think I'm here instead of breaking every limb in Jude's body? Professor Deville with-the-bun, took care of it. Becca tell her." Kelly said.

Becca's face lit up and she pulled the nearest chair to sit beside me, "Oh, Professor Deville with the bun burst into the party, grabbed Jude by the collar and dragged him into the backyard." She began animatedly, her hand gestures were wild and excited. "Then he lifted him off the ground, with just one hand by the way. His feet were dangling and he was stuttering like, 'Who the hell are you? Put me down!' Tyler's eyes were red and his claws were out, and then he growled at Jude, 'You drugged her, didn't you?' By this time, the whole party had gone silent, the DJ had stopped playing the music."

I smiled, not only at the story Becca just narrated but at Becca herself, "I've known you since the first day of orientation and this is the most I've heard you speak. Who would have thought that you were good at imitations?"

Her face flushed with pink and she looked away, going back to her usual shy self.

I giggled amusedly and asked, "So did Jude admit it?"

Kelly snorted, "Not at first. He tried to deny it, said you were just drunk, that it was all a misunderstanding. But Professor Deville with the bun wasn't having it. He whispered something in his ears, I don't know what it was, nobody knows, but it was enough to make Jude's cocky looking face go pale and had him spilling out the truth."

My cheeks heated. So this was what it felt, to have a mate who will protect you and fight for you. But unfortunately, I was in love with another. His twin brother.

The warmth faded when I realized that someone was missing, "Leah.... where's Leah? She was supposed to be at the party, right? Kelly, you mentioned her before I blacked out."

Kelly sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "We don't know. I don't know what it is, but I tried calling her last night after shit went south but she just wasn't picking no matter how many missed calls I gave her. Becca went to the dorm this morning to bring you some toiletries and it was empty."

I frowned. That's weird. There's no way Leah wouldn't answer her phone, the girl was with that device twenty four seven.

Becca bit her lip. "It's just weird. Leah is usually glued to her phone. And she texted me before the party, asking what time we were heading there, but she never showed up. Do you guys think she's okay?"

My stomach twisted. I hope she was.

"When you guys leave here, please try looking for her. I'll also try callling her on my phone." I said to them.

By the next morning, the doctor was in my hospital room. He checked my vitals one last time and looked at me with an unreadable expression, "You're clear, Miss Aliyah. No side effects. But you need to take it easy for a few days. Stay fully hydrated and do not exert yourself. No using of your wolf strength."

I nodded enthusiastically, he had repeated those words twice already and my wolf was getting annoyed and antsy. Kelly had left last night to look for Leah while Becca stayed with me to help with my discharge.

I signed the discharge papers and the doctor finally left.

"So.... ready?" Becca asked with a grin, slinging my bag over her shoulder.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I replied and shot her a smile. Excited Becca was cute and one of my favourite version of her.

We had barely stepped out of the hospital building when the scent hit my nose. That warm, earthy scent that was uniquely his.

I quickly glanced around me, and when I finally spotted him, I released a sharp breath and turned to Becca who was trying to order a ride on her phone.

"Uhm, Becca?"

"Hmm?" She replied absentmindedly.

"I think you should go first. I'll see you in the dorm."

"What? Ali---"

"Bye, Becca." I cut off the rest of her argument and turned around, entering the next street.

I had only taken few steps when a deep voice stopped me.

"Looking for me?"

And there he was.

Tyler Deville was leaning against the opposite wall, with his arms crossed over his broad chest and that charming smile on his face.

"Tyler."

"Wanna talk somewhere more private?" He asked with a suggestive smirk.

"No. And fuck you." Maybe it was the embarrassment I was still feeling from sleeping with my crush's twin brother, but Tyler's presence bothered me in a way.

He frowned a bit, then gave me an amused look, "Uhm, I think you already did that, Aliyah. Now wanna talk somewhere more private?" He repeated.

Ugh, he's so annoying. He's so charming and he knows that damn well, which made him so annoying. I just want to wipe that smirk off his stupid face.

"No. I have nothing to say to you." I shot back at him.

"Even when I'm thinking of going to the management of Rising Moon College to tell him about a certain student who had sex with her professor. Would you still have nothing to say to me?"

"What?!"