AN UNEXPECTED PARTNER

PHEROMONE BLIND

CHAPTER SIX

STARWRITES

Lucas barely slept.

Every time he closed his eyes, the anonymous message flashed through his mind.

Stop investigating  your birth  records, then came the photograph.

Someone had been watching him.

Someone knew he'd gone to the hospital.

Someone knew far more than they should.

When morning finally came, he looked exhausted. Dark circles rested beneath his eyes, and no amount of cold water could wash away the uneasiness sitting in his chest.

As he left his apartment, he glanced over his shoulder more than once.

Nothing.

Just ordinary people walking to work, an elderly woman sweeping the front of her shop, a boy riding a bicycle.

Everything looked normal, yet Lucas couldn't shake the feeling that unseen eyes were following him.

He slipped his phone into his pocket.

The threatening messages were gone.

He had deleted them before leaving home.

But deleting them hadn't erased the fear.

Blackwood Academy buzzed with unusual excitement.

Students crowded the hallways, chatting animatedly as colorful posters were pinned to the notice boards.

"The festival is only three weeks away!"

"I heard there'll be inter-school competitions."

"Our class has to win this year."

Lucas paid little attention,  he  walked straight  to his classroom with his head lowered.

"Lucas!"

Ryan dropped into the seat beside him.

"You look terrible."

Lucas managed a weak smile.

"I didn't sleep well."

Ryan narrowed his eyes.

"You've been saying that a lot lately."

"I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

Before Lucas could answer, Mr. Foster entered the classroom carrying a thick stack of papers.

The room gradually fell silent.

"Good morning, everyone."

"Good morning, sir."

Mr. Foster adjusted his glasses before speaking again.

"As all of you know, the annual Blackwood Academy Festival begins in three weeks."

Instantly, the classroom erupted with excited whispers.

Mr. Foster smiled faintly.

"This year's festival will contribute to your final assessment, so every class will prepare an exhibition project."

He placed the papers on his desk.

"To encourage teamwork, you'll all be working in pairs."

Groans echoed through the room.

"Sir, can we choose our own partners?"

"No."

"That's not fair!"

"The pairs have already been decided."

Lucas rested his chin on his hand.

He hardly cared.

His mind was still occupied by the mysterious messages.

Mr. Foster began reading the list.

"Ryan Cole and Daniel Morris."

Ryan grinned.

"Not bad."

"Sophia Walker and Emily Hart."

Sophia smiled warmly at her assigned partner.

One by one, students learned their pairings.

Lucas barely listened.

Then—

"Lucas Bennett..."

He looked up absentmindedly.

"...Eric Carter."

Silence.

Complete silence.

Every head in the classroom turned toward him.

Lucas blinked.

Surely...

He had heard wrong.

Across the room, even Eric looked momentarily surprised.

Mr. Foster noticed the stunned expressions and cleared his throat.

"Mr. Carter has volunteered to supervise Class 3-B's festival project on behalf of the student council. Since he already has additional responsibilities, I've paired him with someone who can help manage the research portion."

His gaze settled on Lucas.

"That someone is you."

The whispers began immediately.

"Lucas?"

"Again?"

"Why does Eric keep ending up with him?"

"I thought student council members worked alone."

Lucas wanted to disappear beneath his desk.

He slowly raised a hand.

"Sir..."

"Yes?"

"Is it... possible to change partners?"

"I'm afraid not."

Mr. Foster smiled apologetically.

"The assignments have already been approved."

Lucas let his hand fall.

Ryan leaned closer.

"What kind of luck do you have?"

"I wish I knew."

From the corner of his eye, Lucas noticed Eric watching him.

Not intensely.

Not the frightening way he had in the restroom.

Just... quietly.

Almost cautiously.

For some reason, that made Lucas even more nervous.

The morning lessons crawled by.

Every few minutes, Lucas caught himself glancing toward the back of the classroom.

Each time, Eric was either taking notes or listening to the teacher with complete focus.

He looked perfectly normal.

It was hard to believe this was the same person who had cracked a sink with his bare hand only days earlier.

When the lunch bell finally rang, students rushed into the hallway.

Lucas packed his books as quickly as possible.

If he left now, maybe—

"Lucas."

His shoulders  stiffened,  he turned slowly.

Eric stood a few steps away, his bandaged right hand tucked into his pocket.

"We should discuss the project."

Lucas glanced around.

Dozens of students were pretending not to watch them.

"...Not here."

Eric understood immediately.

"Then let's go somewhere quieter."

After a brief hesitation, Lucas nodded.

The library was nearly empty.

Only a handful of students occupied the far tables.

Lucas sat across from Eric, carefully placing his notebook between them.

For a moment, neither spoke.

The silence felt awkward.

Finally, Eric broke it.

"I'm sorry."

Lucas looked up.

"You already apologized."

"I know."

Eric lowered his gaze briefly before meeting Lucas's eyes again.

"I don't think I did it properly."

Lucas studied him.

There wasn't a trace of arrogance on Eric's face.

Only sincerity.

"I scared you."

"You did."

"I lost control."

"I noticed."

A faint, embarrassed smile tugged at the corner of Eric's lips.

Lucas's eyes drifted to the white bandage wrapped around his hand.

"You should stop punching walls."

Eric followed his gaze before letting out a quiet laugh.

It wasn't loud.

It wasn't forced.

It was warm.

"I'll keep that in mind."

Without thinking, Lucas smiled.

The moment he realized it, he quickly looked down at his notebook.

Why was he smiling?

Eric pretended not to notice.

"About the festival..."

He slid several documents across the table.

"I've already collected some ideas."

Lucas looked through them.

His eyes widened.

"You did all this yourself?"

Eric shrugged.

"I couldn't sleep."

Lucas almost laughed.

"So you worked instead?"

"It seemed more productive."

Despite himself, Lucas found the answer amusing.

For the next two hours, they discussed layouts, budgets, schedules, and presentation ideas.

To Lucas's surprise, working with Eric was... easy.

Eric listened carefully whenever Lucas spoke.

He never interrupted.

Whenever they disagreed, he asked questions instead of insisting he was right.

Somehow, Lucas had expected the famous campus heartthrob to be arrogant.

Instead, Eric patiently wrote down every suggestion Lucas made.

At one point, their hands reached for the same notebook.

Their fingers brushed lightly.

Lucas pulled back immediately.

"S-Sorry."

"It's okay."

Eric withdrew his hand just as quickly, though his heartbeat had quickened.

He kept his composure, unwilling to make Lucas uncomfortable again.

For the first time since receiving his diagnosis, Lucas found himself forgetting everything else.

The hospital.

The altered records.

The threatening messages.

Even the fact that he was an Omega.

For a little while...

He simply enjoyed talking to Eric.

By the time they left the library, the afternoon sun had begun to set.

"I'll type everything up tonight," Eric said.

Lucas nodded.

"Thanks."

They walked toward the main building together.

Neither seemed eager to break the comfortable silence.

As they rounded a corner, several senior Alpha students stepped into the corridor.

Their conversation stopped the moment they noticed Lucas.

One of them smirked.

"Hey."

"Have you guys heard?"

"The rumor about the hidden Omega?"

Another laughed.

"They say whoever finds him first will become the luckiest Alpha in school."

Lucas's footsteps slowed.

His chest tightened.

The seniors' eyes briefly swept over him before one of them chuckled.

"You look pale, freshman."

Before Lucas could answer, Eric calmly stepped in front of him.

The movement was subtle.

Natural.

But unmistakably protective.

"He's with me."

His voice wasn't loud.

It didn't need to be.

The hallway instantly fell silent.

The seniors exchanged uneasy glances.

"...We were just joking."

Eric's expression remained calm.

"I know."

"But you're blocking our way."

Without another word, the group stepped aside.

Only after they disappeared around the corner did Eric turn back to Lucas.

"Are you alright?"

Lucas blinked.

"...Yeah."

His heart was beating much faster than before.

Not because of the Alphas.

Because Eric had protected him without hesitation.

They resumed walking.

After several minutes, Lucas finally spoke.

"...Why?"

Eric looked at him.

"Why what?"

"Why are you helping me?"

Eric was quiet for a long moment.

When he finally answered, his voice was softer than Lucas had ever heard it.

"...Because I don't want anything to happen to you."

Lucas forgot how to breathe.

The words were simple.

There was no grand confession.

No dramatic promise.

Yet something about the sincerity in Eric's eyes made Lucas's heart skip.

He quickly looked away.

"...You barely know me."

Eric smiled faintly.

"Maybe."

"But I'd still like to."

Lucas didn't know how to respond.

For the first time...

Walking beside Eric didn't feel frightening.

It felt... strangely comfortable.

From the third-floor window of the administration building, another pair of eyes had been watching everything.

Damian Hayes lowered the blinds with a thoughtful expression.

"So..."

He murmured.

"The rumors weren't exaggerated after all."

His phone vibrated.

He answered immediately.

"Did you find anything?"

A voice spoke from the other end.

"Yes."

"We located records connected to Lucas Bennett."

Damian's expression sharpened.

"What kind of records?"

There was a brief pause.

Then the reply came.

"...Adoption records."

For the first time that day, Damian's smile disappeared.

"Good," he said quietly.

"Bring them to me."

He ended the call and looked once more toward the school courtyard, where Lucas and Eric were walking side by side.

"It seems," he murmured, "this game is about to become much more interesting.