Meeting the Triad

Chapter Five

/-Tediora-/

I smacked my head almost immediately. I mean… flirt with Alvin, not me.

I cursed under my breath. Dammit, I'm not supposed to be reacting this way! 

How the hell did the bastard throw me from raging to flustered? This was supposed to be an all boy's school, dammit!

And yet here I was, face flaming, heart skipping, because some devil in a red tracksuit knew exactly how to make me weak.

Forcing myself together, I began searching for my room. After asking a maid, I went upstairs and located my room on the right side of the corridor. 

I opened the door and found two other people in the room. Here I thought I would get a whole room to myself. I guess I forgot this was still a dorm. With the number of bodyguards I saw, I definitely understood why we had to share rooms. 

“Hello,” I greeted the boys, who were now staring at me weirdly. One of them was my heart with soft brown eyes and black hair, the other was a taller, blue-eyed blonde. “I'm Alvin.” 

While the blonde totally ignored me, the other one spoke. “I'm Basil. Your bed is the one by the window, and your wardrobe space is the third.” 

I smiled, “Thank you, Basil.” 

“There is no friendship here. We are all competitors. In the end, out of thirty of us here, only four will be chosen,” the blonde said, throwing me the stink eye.

“Why four?” I asked, ignoring his glare. He looked at me like I had the word stupid on my forehead.

“Were you jerking off during your training?” He snapped. 

“There is no need to be rude, Sammy…” Basil tried saying, but he snapped. 

“Stay out of this, Jughead!”

I frowned, glancing at Basil to see if he would say something, but he just sighed and lay back on his bed. 

“Listen here, dummy!” Sammy went on. “There are only five phantom wolves. Azriel, Zeke, Asher, Rhys and Dominic. Out of the five, Dominic has already picked one. Which is not surprising since he doesn't care for skills and is just interested in pretty boys he can toy with…”

The last part made my cheeks heat up in embarrassment. So I was supposed to be the pretty boy toy? 

“Although they don't last long, we don't know when the fifth slot would be available, so we have to fight for four and hope we are actually chosen. Two years ago, I heard all four Alphas picked only one person. He lasted for a full year before he mysteriously disappeared…”

My fists clenched. Mariel. 

He was talking about my brother. 

“They say he was the best bodyguard the Phantom wolves ever had, and they liked him a lot,” Sammy continued.

Yes, liked him so much that they killed him off without mercy! 

My eyes were burning with anger. 

“I heard that story,” Basil chipped in. “He was the only Phantom bodyguard to last that long, and it was rumoured they were going to initiate him into the Phantom society and have him take a seat in the parliament when they got appointed this year. It was tragic. Mariel was a MoonCrest star…”

Hearing them talk about my brother like this made my eyes water. Of course, he was a star. He saw good in everyone and that led to his downfall.

I turned away, heading to my bed to hide the tears in my eyes.

“He disappeared in the end, didn't he? All that doesn't matter anymore,” I said.

“Who the hell do you think you are to say that, huh?” Sammy growled at me. “You're not even half of what he was!”

'Calm down, Teddy. Don't break down,’ Ava said softly, and I shut my eyes. 

“You don't have to worry about me, Sammy. I am the boy toy Alpha Dominic picked. There's no reason for us to be enemies,” I said instead. 

“What?!”

The shift in the room was instant, even as I walked to my wardrobe to check on my things. We were asked to leave our properties at the office by the gate; the security personnel would be responsible for moving them all. 

It was a relief to find everything intact. I couldn't imagine my bag of chest binders being shifted to another room. 

When I glanced back at them, they were still staring in disbelief. 

“You… you mean.. Alpha Dominic picked a scrawny man like you as his bodyguard?” Sammy blurted in disbelief. 

“Why are you so surprised?” I asked him icily. “You did say he is not after strength but pretty little boys.” 

His face went completely red. Basil, on the other hand, blinked repeatedly. Before they could utter another word, a knock came to the door. 

“Who is it?” Sammy barked, and the door opened to reveal a trembling server.

“Alpha… Dominic wants to see his bodyguard on the PW floor immediately!” The man spoke quickly. He seemed very lanky and fragile for a place like this. His nervousness was already making him sweat, and we were not even that scary-looking. 

Except Sammy, of course.

“That would be me,” I said calmly and stepped forward. “Do you mind showing me the way?” 

He nodded and scurried off quickly without even glancing back to see if I was following him or not. 

I could hear Sammy muttering behind me. 

“Is he really serious? Sure, he has a pretty face, but I would have expected Alpha Dominic to at least pick someone with actual skills.”

“You shouldn't underestimate everyone, Sammy. Alvin might be pretty strong, too,” I heard Basil respond.

“Like hell he is! Even his own clothes swallow him up, and you think someone like that has a chance in combat?” Sammy's voice disappeared into the distance.

My lips tilted slightly in a smirk. He is free to look down on me all he wants. I work better when I am underestimated, anyway. 

The server stopped by the elevator. 

“This is where I stop. The PW floor is exclusive to the Phantom Wolves and their bodyguards. No one else is permitted to set foot there,” he told me. 

“Really? How do they keep their floor clean then?” I asked curiously, and he gave a strange look before walking away. 

I didn't have time to wonder what that was about and entered the elevator anyway. 

After what seemed like forever, the elevator stopped and opened. I stepped out and was stunned by the magnificence of their floor. The murals on the walls, the marble floors, even the glass doors. It was simply a stunning sight. 

I wondered which of the rooms Dominic was in. The server didn't tell me anything about the room number.

So I thought I'd peek through the glass to see if he was there, but unfortunately, the glass was translucent.

“Fifth room, nitwit!” Came Dominic's harsh voice out of nowhere. I flinched, startled by the fact that there was an intercom. 

How modern could this place be! It was so exciting that I almost forgot the rotten people I was dealing with. 

I finally got to the fifth room, but I couldn't find the door handle. How the hell was I supposed to get in then?

I was still struggling with the door when it suddenly opened, and I staggered in. 

The powerful auras in the room immediately overwhelmed me, and my legs trembled.

“If you can't even figure out how to open a mere door, it's hard to imagine you being useful to me,” Dominic remarked, and my cheeks heated up in embarrassment under the harsh scrutiny of those turquoise eyes. 

“My, my, take it easy on the pretty boy. I'm pretty sure he can be useful in many other ways.” 

I didn't even realise he was behind me until his arm slung around my shoulder. That sweet lavender scent filtered into my nostrils again. 

It was the redhead, no doubt. He must have opened the door. But then my mind shifted back to how close we were. It was unhealthy for me to be this close to a Phantom Wolf. Dammit, I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. 

 I tried to step away from him, but the bastard had a very strong grip. For a second, I considered blasting him away with my magic. 

But obviously, I couldn't do that. 

“Step away from my bodyguard, Rhys.” Dominic's icy tone sent a shiver down my spine. 

“Geez, there is no need to be so possessive,” Rhys drawled with mock surrender. The minute he stepped away from me, I released the breath I didn't realise I was holding.

“I called you here to introduce you to the circle, since you would be serving all four of us until they chose their bodyguards. For now, there are only three of us present, so you will meet the rest later…” Dominic started.

That was when I caught sight of the third person in the room. The blonde who hasn't spared her a glance since she stepped into the room. His face was buried in a book, so she couldn't exactly make out his face,, but he seemed pretty engrossed in whatever he was reading. 

He had his legs crossed on the desk and leaned back on the executive chair, reading.

“Boys, this is Alvin, my new bodyguard,” Dominic introduced. Rhys had a lazy smile on his face while the blonde completely ignored me. “Alvin, this is Rhys Hallowell, Alpha of Dark Knights…”

Dark Knights? As in the dreaded rogue pack?

“I'm pretty sure we've passed the introductory stage,” Rhys shrugged, draping his hand around me again. “I have no interest in a bodyguard, but I like a little sensual play once in a while…”

My cheeks went beet red. He is so… forward. It didn't help that he was so close to me…

So I forced myself to move away from him.

“Sensual play?” I repeated in absolute horror. “With a man? Are you gay or something?”

“Actually, Rhys is gender blind,” Dominic corrected, glaring daggers at the redhead. “He will fuck anything that interests him. That being said…” he took a step forward. “I need you five metres away from my bodyguard, now!” 

“Such a buzzkill,” Rhys muttered, stepping away from me. 

Dominic let out a frustrated sigh, pinching his forehead grimly. Wasn't he the one supposed to be flirty?

Or did plaything mean something else?

He turned his attention to the blonde. “This is Zeke Malloran, Alpha of the Crescent Moon pack.” 

Those oceanic eyes shifted slightly toward me. Even though it was just his eyes, I could still feel the coldness in his gaze. 

He was already Alpha of a very prestigious pack. This aura was the same as his eyes. Harsh and piercing. Like it could penetrate anything and shatter it into a million pieces. Same as his eyes. 

For some reason, I felt the actual need to make an introduction.

“Greetings, Alpha. It's a pleasure…”

“Who gave you permission to speak to me, insect?”

His tone was so harsh and dismissive that it hurt my pride. His gaze returned to his novel like I didn't exist. 

“You should get used to it since you will be acting as his bodyguard as well…”

“I appreciate the gesture, Dominic,” Zeke cut in, shutting the book for the first time. My breath hitched as I finally got a clear view of his face. 

He was so… beautiful. He had the same build as Rhys and the rose tattoo. But his expression was rather serious, coupled with his defined features, I could tell that he hated me. 

“But I'd appreciate it if you kept that pest away from me.” 

Just like that, he walked out of the room. My fists clenched. What is his problem anyways? And what's with that condescending tone?

I am not a pest! Or an insect!

“Don't beat yourself up, little mouse.” Rhys easily took his spot. “Zeke's been a little grumpy since our last bodyguard, but I'm sure he'll get used to you in no time.” 

My eyes widened. 

Mariel!

I glanced at the door. I could still feel his chilling, cold presence even though he was gone. 

What was this man's relationship with my brother? Did he give him trouble as well?

“Now for your first duty as bodyguard…” Dominic said, drawing my attention. 

I hated to say this, but I was all fired up. The more missions I completed, the closer I would get to them, and eventually I would be able to take them down…

A broom was suddenly thrust into my hand. 

“Make sure to clean up every room on this floor. It's been tacky for a while,” Dominic said, and I blinked rapidly.

I… I am… their cleaner?

Before I could even complain about that, he went on to say, “One more thing, there will be training that will start tomorrow for all the bodyguard applicants. You will be joining them.”

Now, that wasn't exactly surprising. I was prepared to train as much as I needed to. 

“Make sure you come shirtless, too,” Rhys added with a wink. “I want to stare at your body.” 

'Stop flirting with me, you bastard. I hate all of you!’ I thought, a little tempted to throw the broom at that stupidly handsome face of his. 

Dominic ignored Rhys’ comment and went on, “You will be sparing with at least thirty trainees. You better be in the top five or I will drop you!”