HOT BOYS MAYHEM

Wren’s POV

I wasn't just bonded to three Alpha wolves anymore. Now I had also dropped all three of them for the new LakeDale transfer who had been at this school for four days. 

At that point, I was wondering, ‘Who the hell was Wren Reyes? Because she was definitely not me.’

The rumours were getting more creative, day by day

I found the whole thing mildly hilarious and did absolutely nothing to correct it.

Eli was the first person at WhiteWood in three years who talked to me like I was a regular human being. To him, I wasn’t just a fat omega equipment 

I knew the Voss brothers were going to be so mad about my relationship with Eli. The bond would twist their guts with jealousy 

I was walking to class when I saw all three of them, arranged in a loose half circle with Eli at the center 

Eli was six foot three and he was not small. But Zade, Rook and Cal standing together was a different kind of physics. Eli had his back to the lockers and his chin up. Good composure, but terrible odds.

“Stay the fuck away from Wren!” Rook banged on the locker behind Eli

“Oh, shit no!” I sprinted straight into the middle of it.

"Wren…" Eli saw me.

"What in shit’s name are y’all doing!?" I snapped, putting myself between him and the Voss, which meant I was looking up at Zade's jaw, which was doing its tight thing. I turned to face the three of them fully. "Oh man, common!”

"We are just having a conversation," Rook said pleasantly. He was doing the stupid, charming smile 

"Right." I crossed my arms. "With you three and him one."

"We just want him to understand the situation," Zade said.

"The situation." I nodded slowly. Then I turned around and looked at Eli. "You know what's funny? This boy has been here less than a week and he is the only sane person in this school.” I turned back to the brothers. "He is the only happy thing for me here." I held up both hands. "He makes me feel normal." I let the last one drag. "All you three do is insult me!"

None of them answered.

Rook looked away. White seeped into Zade's eyes, he was holding back his wolf. Cal… well, the psycho had no expression. He was just paying full attention,

"He's my friend," I said, simply. "And y’all are not going to ruin that for me."

I turned back to Eli who was grinning slightly, but genuinely touched. 

"Come on," I said to him. "We have class."

Behind me all three brothers were so red 

I kept walking.

***

Class ended, but the chaos wasn’t over. Monday had more surprises in store

The food thing happened on Monday and Eli was with me per usual

Eli looked up. "You okay?"

“Eww… eww… ewww…” I wasn't okay. Something was in the food. My stomach turned hard and fast and I made it to the bin at the end of the table before I threw up, which was so humiliating 

The cafeteria went quiet. 

Then Vera Thorne said, "How unfortunate."

Vera had a hand in this, I could swear with my life! I was going to deal with her, I swore on my father’s grave! I felt my body shaking from both anger and disgust 

I heard the laughter start. I was still bent over the bin with my hand on the table and I heard it start and spread and I bit my cheek hard. 

I didn't hear Eli move but I heard the chair scrape.

From the corner of my eyes, I saw him cross the cafeteria to the server by the front of his shirt before the boy could process what was happening. Eli shook 

"Who told you to do that," he voice dropped dangerously 

The server shook. "Vera Thorne. She paid me. I swear I didn't know what it was, she just said to swap the food …"

Eli let go of his shirt and turned around.

The cafeteria had gone quiet in a scary way. Not even a fire drill had made it this quiet before

Eli walked straight to Vera's table. She stood up before he reached her, like an admission.

"That was nothing to do with me," she said chimed. "I don't know what he told you but…"

"He told me your name," Eli said. 

“And?” I saw the fear in Vera’s eyes 

“I will deal with you…”

"Fine, Lyra." Vera turned to her sister without missing a beat. "Tell him."

Lyra was sitting. She shook her head once. Quiet and simple. “No.”

Eden, on Vera's other side, was eating her food. She did not look up. She could not have communicated her level of non-involvement more clearly if she had held up a sign.

"Touch her food again," Eli said to Vera, "and I will make that pretty face of yours crumble in blood and tears…” he bared his fangs 

Vera said nothing. She just backed off

Eli turned and walked back to me.

People were talking 

“He's actually insane”.

“Did you see his face when he grabbed…”

“Who even is he?”

“He's so hot…”

“I know, right?”

“Gosh he crossed a line, threatening a Thorne?”

He crouched in front of me where I was still standing by the bin, one hand on the table, trying to decide if my legs were reliable. Up close his blue eyes were very calm for someone who had just manhandled a cafeteria server and threatened a Thorne sister in front of the whole school.

"Can you walk?" he asked.

"Obviously," I said, chuckling weirdly 

My legs were not reliable.

He put one arm around my back and whisked me off the ground. 

Now, never have I ever seen a he-wolf carry a size sixteen with so much ease. I was so impressed, I blushed

I heard the girls in the corridor as we passed. More talks, actual audible reactions. 

I would have found it funny if I wasn't currently being escorted out of a cafeteria because someone had put pig waste in my food. Vera had so many unchecked boxes in the ledger and she was out there adding new ones?

“Why does she keep getting the good ones?”

“First the Voss brothers, now him?”

“She's not even all that…”

“And she is so fat and ugly…”

“I think she has gone diabolical 

Eli was almost at the sick bay when he walked straight into Cal.

He stopped dead.

Immediately Cal Voss saw us, I saw his face change. His eyes went from Eli's face to my face to Eli's arm around my back and I saw betrayal dance behind those brown eyes of his

Then came the weird tapping of his ring finger against his thigh. Once. Twice. He stopped it deliberately, like he had caught himself.

Then silence 

"Put her down," Cal said.

His voice was perfectly level. No single emotion in it

Eli looked at me. I looked at Cal. Cal was not looking at Eli anymore. He was looking at me 

"She's sick," Eli said carefully. "I'm takin

g her to the sick bay."

Cal took one step forward. "I said put her down."