Nine: Kyle

Barely a week has passed since my seventeenth birthday and it couldn’t have sucked more. We werewolves have pretty high expectations with this particular birthday, especially because our wolves mature enough to finally recognize our mate by their scent. Having a mate is probably the end goal for many werewolves around the world and I can’t blame them. I have seen how much in love two mates can be, how sappy that shit is and I’m not going to judge someone who wants the same thing in life as soon as possible even though that’s not the mission of my life.

I was excited by finally getting the opportunity to train with the elder wolves because I wanted to be a warrior for my pack. I knew I had it in me and I could very easily see it happen. I would have been an amazing warrior too, instead, I was carted off to the other side of the country so that I could supposedly bond with my birth father and his pack. Well, fuck that. That’s at the bottom of my priority list. So, it is no surprise that I am scowling as I get ready for school in this new pack.

Noah Strong has been assigned the task of taking me to school like I’m a kid who can’t find his way around. Granted I’m new here and don’t know this place well but I’m sure I would have figured it out. I’m also dreading meeting Noah again after last night, the way he emphasized me being the next alpha. Hell, if it were up to him, I’d take over as the alpha tomorrow. It would have been better if he had hated my guts and told me I would never be a good alpha like my father or something.

I grumble pack my bag and slam my bedroom for good measure. Let the whole pack house be attuned to my frustrations! The layout of this pack is not that different from the one back home and it doesn’t take me a long time to find the entrance of the building. I bound down the steps quickly and felt my wolf just underneath my skin, begging for a long and hard run. If Noah is that cooperative, maybe he’ll take me for a run after school.

I find him leaning against a black Mercedes Benz and mentally doing a double-take. I shouldn’t be surprised. Somehow, bigger packs amass a huge amount of money and most of the cash goes to the wolves with higher ranks. It’s not unfair; it’s just because they work a lot for the well-being of the pack and it’s something they get in return. I have never understood how the finances of a pack work because it’s something only taught to the future alpha or the beta of the pack. Noah would probably know all about it and I’m sure he would give me a very detailed explanation if I chose to ask him about it.

“Hey Kyle, ready for your first day?” Noah rounds from the bonnet and opens the driver’s side of the car. I open the passenger side door and look up to meet his eyes.

“Honestly, it’s the last thing I want to do right now.” He doesn’t look surprised by my answer. He seems a bit pleased that he got the true answer from me. Without another word, we settle into our seats and drive towards the school.

After fifteen minutes, Noah parks the car in the school’s parking lot. He turns towards me and points in the direction of the main entrance of the building. “The school office is the first left from the entrance. You’ll find the reception and principal’s office there. You’ll get your schedule and locker number from Mrs. Nadine. Feel free to ask the directions to your first class too because I don’t think any other student is going to help you, you being new here and all. All the seniors have their lunches at the same time and there are no leftovers, so be there on time. Now, I am going to leave because I can figure out that you want to be alone for this. So, I’ll text you at the end of school so I can pick you up and we’ll go from there. Sounds good?” Before I can say anything, he is getting out of the car. He looks pointedly at me when I don’t immediately get out and I scramble to get out of the car. He locks the car, shoots me a nod, and walks away.

The office is exactly where Noah said it would be and I collect all my documents from Mrs. Nadine who I’m sure is a human. I skim through my schedule and ask for directions for my first class and my locker. I arrive in my first class a little late but the teacher gestures for me to enter the room and take a seat. I easily breeze through the first three morning periods, English, Art, and Physics. Granted I didn’t exactly make any friends because I’m as wary of these wolves as they are of me. I can imagine how edgy their wolves must be to smell me so I took extra effort to steer clear of them.

Now I’m heading to the cafeteria, where all the senior class is going to be sitting from wall to wall. I’m officially going to be put up in an exhibition because I’m sure everyone must know about me and my family by now. The long-lost family of the alpha has suddenly woken up from their deep slumber to take away the throne by just being the firstborn. If I had been in their position, I’d curse myself too but it’s hard to explain to all of them that staying here and being their alpha is the last thing I want.

I’m not surprised when the loud cafeteria grows quiet as soon as I enter the hall. I don’t make eye contact with anyone; I make my way to the food cart and when everyone realizes there’s going to be no drama, the hall fills with loud chatter again and I feel my tense muscles relax one by one. I load my tray with food and without checking twice, head to the empty corner table in the hall, grateful for the small reprieve.

I slide into the bench, my back facing everyone else and look at the burgers on my plate. Well, at least they don’t look like two sorry shits like they did back at home. Without another thought, I pick up a burger and take the biggest bite possible out of it and I’m floored by the amazing scent of it. This burger smells like nothing I have ever smelt before. It smells like cherries, vanilla, and chocolate all rolled into one and I’d be happy for life if I could wrap up in this smell for the rest of my life.

My eyes widen in realization at what’s happening to me right now. I swallow the huge bite of my burger and put it down so that I can take a deep breath. My wolf is going crazy inside my head, begging me to turn around and hunt for that one person who is destined to be mine. My wolf chants Mate! Mate! Mate! in my head and I fight the urge to snap at him. Of course, I know my mate is nearby because no burger on this earth smells that good. I turn around and try to find the source of this amazing smell, to finally set my eyes on her. I take a deep breath so that I can at least know the general direction the smell is coming from but my senses let me know that the scent has faded, which means that this girl has recently left the cafeteria hall, otherwise her smell would have just gotten more intense.

I leave my belongings on the bench and race towards the cafeteria’s doors that are still swinging, probably from the last person that left which has got to be my mate. I burst outside into the corridor which forks into three directions. Just my luck!

I take a deep whiff of the air around me, trying my hardest to catch on to her scent. To a human, I must look like a dog trying to sniff up its bones in the ground. Hell, I don’t even care about that. She’s got to be here. She’s got to be!

Panic rises inside me and the thought of not being able to ever see again makes me whimper. For someone who wasn’t interested in getting to know their mate, I’m acting exactly like someone who had been waiting for their better half for the better part of their lives.

I take a deep breath in a last attempt to regain my senses and follow the scent of my mate, but apart from a lingering whiff of vanilla, I get nothing. My shoulders slump in disappointment but I straighten when I realize if she was here today, she must be a student here, or maybe a teacher, and she has got to be here every day. She could even be in one of my classes. With that thought in mind, I square my shoulders, eager to be in this pack for the first time.