CHAPTER TWO: THE BOY HE LOVED TO HATE

Ten years later.

“Get on your knees and apologize!”

Ethan stared at the boy standing in front of him, wondering how his day had managed to get any worse.

His books lay scattered across the hallway floor. His shirt was stained with coffee, and his right shoulder throbbed from being slammed against the lockers moments earlier.

All because he had refused to give up his seat in the cafeteria.

“Did you hear me, nerd?”

Ethan looked at Mason, one of the school’s hockey team player and sighed.

“Trust me, I’ve heard you. Unfortunately, I haven’t developed the ability to stop hearing nonsense.”

A few students snickered.

Mason’s face tightened.

“You think you’re funny?”

“Not particularly, but you seem easily entertained.”

Mason shoved him against the lockers again.

Ethan winced but refused to look away. He had learned that showing fear only encouraged people like Mason. Unfortunately, he had also learned that standing up for himself rarely ended well.

“Maybe someone should teach you some manners,” Mason muttered.

“Maybe someone should teach you how to behave without an audience.”

Mason raised his fist.

“That’s enough!”

Alice pushed through the gathering students, her face red with anger.

“Get your hands off him!”

Mason glanced at her. “This doesn’t concern you.”

“It concerns me when three idiots corner one person.”

Ethan groaned inwardly. Alice had a talent for making bad situations worse.

“Alice, leave it.”

“I’m not leaving you with these animals.”

Mason stepped toward her.

“Watch your mouth, Campbell.”

Before he could get any closer, another voice interrupted.

“What’s going on here?”

The crowd parted almost immediately.

"Cole Blackwood, of course."

Ethan almost laughed. Of all the people who could have walked into this mess, it had to be the one person he least wanted to see.

Cole stood with his usual effortless confidence, his dark hair falling slightly over his forehead. His expression was cold, and his presence alone was enough to silence the hallway.

He was the school’s golden boy and the person everyone seemed desperate to impress.

Ethan couldn’t understand the fascination.

To him, Cole was nothing more than a beautiful nightmare.

Cole had only been at the school for a few weeks, yet somehow he already moved through the halls like he owned them. He had joined the hockey team almost immediately and became captain in record time.

Since the day Cole arrived, he had fixed on Ethan with an intensity that made no sense. He had made a sport of embarrassing him, he mocked his clothes, questioned his intelligence, and found new ways to remind him that they belonged to different worlds. Sometimes he did it in front of everyone. Other times, a quiet remark was enough to ruin Ethan’s entire day.

Ethan had tried ignoring him.

He had tried avoiding him.

Neither had worked.

Now, seeing Cole approach, he prepared himself for another humiliating comment.

Mason quickly straightened.

“Nothing, Cole. Just dealing with a little problem.”

Cole’s eyes moved toward Ethan.

Then to his stained shirt, scattered books, and the hand Mason still had gripping his collar.

Something in Cole’s chest tightened, his wolf, usually quiet during school hours, stirred restlessly beneath his skin.

“Let him go.”

Mason hesitated.

“We were only joking.”

Cole’s expression didn’t change, though his eyes flashed gold for a brief second, too fast for most people to notice.

“Did I ask?”

Mason released Ethan.

“Sorry, man.”

“Pick up his books.”

The order caught everyone off guard, including Ethan.

Mason looked uncomfortable but obeyed, gathering the books and dropping them at Ethan’s feet.

Cole stepped closer.

“And if I see you touching him again, you’ll have a problem with me.”

Mason muttered something under his breath before disappearing with his friends.

The crowd gradually dispersed.

Ethan remained where he was, staring at Cole.

What was that about?

Since when did Cole Blackwood care whether someone bullied him? Wasn’t that supposed to be his job?

“Are you waiting for applause?” Cole asked.

There it was. The arrogance he knew so well.

Ethan bent to collect his books.

“I was actually waiting for you to leave.”

Alice coughed, trying to hide her laughter.

Cole’s eyes narrowed.

“Still running your mouth, I see.”

“Still listening, I see.”

For a moment, they stared at each other.

Ethan hated how easily Cole could make him uncomfortable. There was something unsettling about his gaze, something that made Ethan feel as though he was being examined.

Cole finally looked away.

“Try not to get yourself beaten up again. It’s embarrassing.”

Ethan straightened.

“Don’t worry. I won’t mistake your sudden interest for concern.”

Cole’s jaw tightened.

“Believe whatever you want.”

He turned and walked away.

Ethan watched him disappear into the crowd, his confusion growing.

What had just happened?

Cole had spent the last few weeks finding new ways to unsettle him. He had never once stepped in to defend him. In fact, Ethan was fairly certain Cole would have found the entire situation entertaining if he hadn’t interrupted it.

“That was strange,” Alice said.

“Strange? It was suspicious.”

“Maybe he’s changing.”

Ethan gave her a look.

“Please. I’d sooner believe the moon is made of cheese.”

Alice laughed and linked her arm through his.

But Ethan’s thoughts remained on Cole.

He couldn’t understand why the boy who seemed to hate him so much had suddenly threatened someone else for doing exactly what he had been doing all along.

What Ethan didn’t know was that Cole was asking himself the same question.

As he walked away, his hands clenched into fists. His wolf was still restless, pacing under his skin as if it recognized something it shouldn’t.

He had no reason to interfere.

He didn’t even like the boy.

So why had the sight of Mason’s hand gripping Ethan’s shirt made him want to break something?