Chapter 5 - Behind The Mask

Nova

I forced myself to keep my expression still, but the way his eyes lingered on me made it difficult to breathe normally. I tried to ignore him and move past him, only for him to step directly into my path. I stopped short, looking up at him with an annoyed frown.

“You should be begging me to keep quiet by now,” he said, his smirk turning sharper. “Get down on your knees, roomie. Maybe I’ll decide to be merciful.”

I clenched my jaw.

“I don’t give a fuck. Do whatever you want.”

I turned away before he could see how badly my hands were shaking, but I had barely taken a step when his hand caught my arm. He pulled me back, and I lost my balance so suddenly that I didn't even have time to react. We fell against each other, and my lips brushed his. His eyes widened, his entire body going rigid beneath me, while my heart seemed to stop inside my chest.

I pushed away from him so quickly that I nearly stumbled again, clutching my bags as I hurried into my bedroom. I shut the door behind me and pressed my back against it, breathing hard.

Did I just kiss that man?

Oh no. No, no, no. It was a mistake. A stupid, horrible mistake.

I lifted a trembling hand to my mouth, still feeling the brief warmth of his lips, which I wiped immediately.

"That was so close," I whispered, rushing toward the mirror.

My wig had shifted during the fall, leaving a small opening near the side, and a thin strand of white hair was visible beneath it. I quickly adjusted the wig.

Maybe I should have apologized to him? I stared at myself for a long moment before letting out a bitter breath.

No. Let him do whatever he wanted. If I got expelled, fine. I would leave this hell of a school and never have to see him again.

I waited until Alaric was gone before I left, hurrying out with my bag before he could return.

I found a quiet public bathroom outside the hostel where I could change and dye my hair without anyone seeing me. Once I was done, I slipped into the dress I had bought because I couldn't bear to leave it behind when I came to Wintercrest Hockey Academy, then let my hair fall freely around my shoulders. For a moment, I stood in front of the mirror, staring at the girl I had spent so long hiding.

It was time to say goodbye to my crush of ten years.

By the time I reached the restaurant, I was already nervous. I sat at a table near the corner, keeping my eyes on the entrance while the minutes dragged by. Ten minutes became twenty, then thirty. After fifty minutes, I glanced at my phone again, my anxiety twisting tighter with every passing second. My hair would turn white soon. I could feel the familiar warning in my scalp, and panic began to rise.

Of course. Even now, everything had to go wrong.

I grabbed my bag and stood, ready to leave before anyone could notice, when a voice suddenly called from behind me.

"Lily."

I turned. My breath caught. That was my anonymous name.

The masked Alpha heir stood there, smiling down at me. I immediately lowered my gaze, my heart crashing against my ribs.

No. It couldn't be.

"You're Lily, right?" he said with a broad smile. Even with the mask covering his left eye, I could still see just how bright it was.

"I'm Alaric," he said, stretching out his hand toward me.

No way the boy I'd been messaging for months, the one person who had always felt safe, could actually be him. It had to be a mistake.

My hair was already beginning to change, and my father’s warnings echoed in my head. Don’t let anyone see your white hair. It could lead to your death.

Immediately I turned and hurried toward the toilets, gripping my bag so tightly my knuckles hurt. I heard his footsteps behind me, and my breathing turned frantic. I kept my face angled away, refusing to let him see it even as he called after me.

I reached the hallway just as the last of the dye gave up. My white hair spilled over my shoulders, bright and impossible to hide. I barely had time to turn before Alaric caught my arm and pulled me back, and that was when he finally saw my face.

His eyes moved over it, then down to my hair, and the amusement slowly drained from his expression, as though he couldn't understand what he was seeing.

Then his gaze returned to mine.

"You…”