Chapter 3

~Solange ~

I woke up to Jaxon’s alarm blaring like someone was dying, and the first thing I thought was *I survived the night without anyone noticing I’m a girl*. The second thing was *my binder feels like it’s trying to murder my ribs*. Oh my fucking goodness I was hsving difficulty breathing. I rolled over on the top bunk, stared at the ceiling for three seconds, and decided today was going to suck less than yesterday. Famous last words.

Jaxon slammed the snooze button. “Five more minutes, world. Fuck off.”

Ryker was already up, pulling on a shirt like he was angry at it. “Get up, Hale. Class in forty.”

“Class can kiss my ass,” Jaxon muttered into his pillow.

Kael didn’t even open his eyes. “You’re going to be late again. And you’ll blame me when the professor calls you out.”

“Blame whoever the hell I want,” Jaxon said, but he was already swinging his legs off the bed.

I climbed down the ladder trying not to make noise, but the damn thing creaked like it hated me. Ryker glanced over. One look. That was all it took for my stomach to flip. I hated how he did that, looked at me like he was trying to solve a puzzle with missing pieces.

“Morning, Lange,” he said. No smile.

“Morning,” I mumbled, grabbing my bag.

Jaxon yawned so wide I thought his jaw would dislocate. “You sleep okay, princess? You were tossing like you were fighting demons.”

I shot him a glare. “Don’t call me that.”

“Too late. It’s stuck. Princess Lange. Rolls right off the tongue.”

“Call me that again and I’ll shove your laptop up your fucking… ”

“Language,” Kael interrupted from his bunk, still not looking up. “We have physiology in thirty. Move.”

We moved.

The lecture hall was packed, first-years crammed in the back, seniors taking the good seats like they owned them. Professor Hale, no relation to Jaxon, thank goodness was already at the front scribbling on the board. She looked mean. 

She started without preamble.

“Yesterday’s reading. Someone tell me why the standard serum fails under triple lunar exposure.”

A guy in the front row raised his hand. “Because… um… the metabolite overload?”

She turned slowly. “Elaborate.”

He swallowed. “It… overwhelms the primary receptors?”

“Wrong.” She crossed her arms. “And vague. Next.”

Another hand. A girl this time.

“Closer. But still wrong.” The professor’s smile was sharp. “Anyone else want to embarrass themselves?”

I should’ve kept my mouth shut. I really should’ve.

But my hand went up before my brain could stop it.

She pointed at me like she was doing me a favor. “You. New kid?”

“Yeah,” I said. “ The triple exposure triggers a feedback loop in the tertiary metabolites.” After going for a while I finally concluded. “Otherwise the patient crashes.”

The room went dead quiet.

Professor Hale stared at me. Then at the board. Then back at me.

“Where did you read that?”

“Pack Libraries have a lot of work, I don't focus more on human patients like the school advices but I do on pack medicine ,” 

She narrowed her eyes. “Name the derivative.”

“Silver-thorn extract. Stabilizes without harming the patient.”

She didn’t smile. But she didn’t call me wrong either.

“Correct,” she said finally. “Sit down. And stop hiding in the back next time, smart students need to be at the front.”

I sat. My face was hot. Everyone was looking.

Jaxon leaned over from the row behind me. “Damn, brainy and pretty wait, I mean smart. Shit. Brainy and… dude-like. There. Fixed it.”

“Shut up,” I hissed.

Kael was watching me from two seats over. Not smirking like Jaxon. Just… watching. Like he was adding me up in his head and the numbers weren’t matching.

Ryker didn’t say anything. Just kept his eyes on the board. But I felt him looking too.

Lunch was worse.

We grabbed trays some kind of mystery meat and potatoes that looked like they’d been boiled in sadness and headed for a table in the corner. I was two bites in when she appeared.

Seraphina, I didn't expect to see a girl in an all boys academy, don't look at me, I was a boy right now.

Tall. Curvy. Hair like she spent money on it. Makeup perfect. The kind of girl who made you feel small just by breathing the same air.

She walked straight to Ryker, slid into the seat next to him and put her hand on his arm.

“Hey, baby,” she said. Loud enough for the whole table to hear. “Miss me?”

Ryker stiffened. “Seraphina. What are you doing here?”

“Visiting my favorite alpha,” she said sweetly. Then her eyes slid to me. “Who’s the skinny new kid?”

I froze with my fork halfway to my mouth.

Jaxon snorted into his water. Kael kept eating like nothing was happening.

Ryker moved his arm. Just slightly. But he moved it. “Lange. New roommate.”

“Lange,” she repeated, dragging my name out like it tasted bad. “Cute. You look like you’ll break if someone breathes on you.”

I set my fork down. Slowly. “I don’t break easily. ”

Her smile sharpened. “We’ll see.”

Ryker cleared his throat. “We’re eating.”

“So eat,” she said, leaning closer to him. Her hand went back on his arm. Higher this time. “I’m not stopping you.”

I stared at her fingers. Long. Manicured. Wrapped around Ryker’s bicep like she owned it.

Something hot and ugly twisted in my chest.

Not jealousy. Couldn’t be jealousy. I didn’t even know him. I didn’t want him. I didn’t want any of them.

But my wolf didn’t care about logic.

It wanted to rip her hand off.

I looked away fast. 

Jaxon kicked my shin under the table. “You good, princess?”

“Call me that one more time and I’ll stab you with this fork.”

He grinned. “Kinky.”

Seraphina laughed. “Boys. Always so charming.”

Ryker finally pulled his arm free. “You should go. We have class.”

She pouted. Stood. Leaned down and kissed his cheek right in front of us.

“See you later, baby. Don’t forget about me.”

She walked away. Hips swinging. Every eye in the cafeteria followed her.

I stared at my tray. Appetite gone.

Jaxon whistled low. “She’s intense.”

“She’s his ex,” Kael said quietly. First words he’d spoken since class. “They dated last year. Broke up messy.”

Ryker rubbed his cheek like he could wipe the kiss off. “Ancient history.”

“Didn’t look ancient,” I muttered.

He looked at me. Sharp. “What?”

“Nothing. How is she here though?”.. 

“She's one of the chancellor’s daughter.”

“Ohhhhhh…” 

***

Evening came fast. Too fast.

I waited until they were all out dinner run or whatever and locked myself in the bathroom. Hot shower. I needed it. Binder off. Skin red and angry underneath. I stood under the spray and let the water pound my shoulders until it hurt less. And my poor tities, these babies had been stuck in that binder shit all day. 

The door rattled.

“Lange? You okay in there?”

Jaxon.

I panicked. Grabbed the binder. Wrapped it fast. Too fast. It slipped. One side loosened.

“Fine!” I yelled. 

“You sure? You’ve been in there forever. If you’re jerking off, just say so. No judgment.”

“I’m not… shut up.”

He laughed. “Princess is blushing. Cute.”

The nickname again.

I finished wrapping. Checked the mirror. Good enough.

Opened the door.

Jaxon leaned against the frame. Grinning. “Took you long enough.”

“Some of us like privacy,” I snapped.

He raised his hands. “Whoa. Touchy.”

Ryker appeared behind him. Shirt damp from the gym or something. Hair messy. Eyes on me again.

He didn’t move. Just looked at me and my heart did this summersault in my chest. 

Something in his stare made my chest hurt.

I pushed past them both. Climbed the ladder to my bunk. Pulled the blanket over my head.

Jaxon’s voice drifted up. “Night, princess.”

“Fuck off,” I muttered.

Ryker didn’t say goodnight.

But I felt him watching me until the lights went out.

And somewhere deep inside, my wolf whispered that this was only the beginning she really wanted to make him hers.