12.

I was pretty sure I looked like shit. My head still hurt even after that strong coffee Nathan had prepared for us, feeling the bitchy after-effects of that strong gin we'd had last night. I felt nauseous and tired. Not to mention that I didn't get a wink of sleep. Not after what Nathan had told me about my mate's wolf. That he was-

My own wolf whimpered again within me, interrupting my thoughts and forcing me to have another inquisitive look around the parking lot and search for my car, feeling so anxious as I knew that he was bound to arrive at school today with it. I didn't want to see him. I couldn't bear to face him today. Maybe even never again. Not after *that.*
What if he loses his shit again when he feels us? Who's to say that he will be able to restrain his wolf for a second time? Maybe we were lucky last night but no one is **that** lucky.

"You okay?"

I mildly startled at the sound of Carrie's concerned tone, blowing out a small sigh before I gave her a quick nod. I really didn't feel like telling her anything at the moment. She was barely starting to warm up to her own mate and I didn't want to ruin all that for them and scare her away from the Alpha. And I was pretty sure that he didn't want that either. He'd made it glaringly clear earlier this morning when he'd purposely stopped me from telling her anything about what really happened last night. And I really didn't feel like disobeying him. The future Alpha King. He'd already been so much kinder and patient than I would've ever expected him to be. I didn't want to change that.

"Hey where's your car by the way?" She casually asked me as we'd arrived to school with her mate's car after a quick stop to her place for a change of clothes this morning, the Alpha himself being the one to give her a fast reply,
"David borrowed it so that he could go home last night,"

I only gave out a small nod of approval at his words, keeping quiet and mostly lost within my own mind as we pushed past the entrance. I couldn't stop those crazy thoughts about my mate that kept revolving around in my head.

Apparently his wolf was a twisted psycho, according to his Alpha's words. I didn't even know what that was supposed to mean, if I were to be honest. He hadn't even bothered to further elaborate after casually throwing that giant and very concerning piece of information at me, leaving me to simmer within my own restlessness and worry for the remainder of the night. And now I was possibly about to have another encounter with him and I didn't even know what to expect.

Hell, I had half a mind to fuck it all, school and everything and just run back home, lock myself inside my room and then fucking hide myself under the bed like a scared little pup.

I was fucking terrified of this whole situation and I didn't even know how to deal with it. Damn! Wasn't it enough already? The fact that I was hopelessly bound to the fucking Royal Beta of all wolves on this planet, but he also had to have a *twisted psycho* for a wolf? Was this a joke? A some kind of sick and cruel punishment? What did I do? Where did I go wrong? How could I have possibly angered the Goddess in such a way that she punished me like this? Why did the Moon hate me so much?

*Shit*, I mentally cursed, quickly blinking away those tears gathering in my eyes and I thickly swallowed, raising my gaze just in time to watch Carrie stomp towards the news board with determined strides before she quickly ripped off that photo of her and David from the Fall Prom.
Then she crumpled it in her hand and offered me a saddened and guilty look, her cheeks blooming with a pink tint as her gaze momentarily shifted to Nathan. And with an encouraging inhale she rather hesitantly uttered,
"We...We didn't..."

"Don't worry, I know," I rushed to answer with a forced smile and a small nod of acceptance, obviously not having the strength to care about all that anyway. I was rather preoccupied trying to figure out how I was going to endure so many hours in the same building with my mate instead while fighting the urge to scream and run the other way whenever I'd lay eyes on him. Which was bound to happen very soon, actually.

I'd barely heard her ask me again for the millionth time what was up with me as we sat together in class, about to give her that same lifeless answer when the door suddenly opened, watching him stride inside with a shitty mood written all over his handsome face.

His plump lips were set in a straight line and his jaw was clenched, looking like he wanted to murder somebody as he absently stared around the classroom until his gaze found my own, making my heart jump and my body stiffen with utter terror.

Shit. Shit shit shit.

My fingers tightly locked around the pen in my hand, anxiously wondering about what was going to happen next, hesitating to make a single move as I observed every tiny one of his, those features softening for the briefest moment as he continued to look at me. And after expressing a confused frown he lastly tore his gaze away and strode towards that empty seat next to Nathan's, allowing me to finally exhale that breath so painfully lodged within my throat.

This continued to happen throughout our classes whenever we'd found ourselves staring at each other, my body constantly freezing with fear as he stared at me with that miserable look in his eyes, spending painfully long moments before finally tearing his gaze away.
He'd even made me occasionally stumble or drop things as I kept looking back like the idiot I was, receiving odd and even concerned looks from Carrie and the warriors. They were all probably already wondering what was going on between us as my "little reactions" became more and more visible after every single clash of our gazes, making me feel more nervous and more apprehensive as I kept fearing that he would lastly succumb to his *psychotic* nature like Nathan said and try to hurt us by forcefully mating us or hell-knows what else.
But thankfully, none of that happened and none of them uttered a single word about my weird behavior either, sparing me the extra awkwardness and shame of having to explain that I'd just found out that my mate's wolf is dangerous and that now I was even more afraid of him than I was before.

"Has anyone of you seen my sister?" I heard Carrie ask as we sat at a table outside in the school's picnic area for lunch, my wolf's fearful whine echoing in my head as she could already feel the menacing presence of her mate somewhere close by for the millionth time that day.

"Nope,"

"I think she went out for a ride with Estefany,"

"Yeah, I think I saw them leaving earlier before I came here,"

I could barely hear the warriors talk over that furious pounding in my ears, forcing myself not to raise my gaze from my lunch tray as I didn't want to accidentally meet his again. I couldn't bear to look at him any longer. I was tired and scared and I just wanted to go home already. Home and away from him.

But my breath suddenly remained stuck in my throat as a gentle breeze carried that unmistakable mouth-watering scent straight into my nostrils, making my eyes widen with alarm.
My wolf's very essence trembled within me, forcing that tiny whimper to take form before I could even try to stop it, feeling those goosebumps arise as I dared a peek past Carrie's silhouette.

The warriors immediately started to growl too from the opposite side of the table, no doubt having already sensed my wolf's unrest as I watched the Royal Beta approach our table with determined strides.

Fuck.

I cast my gaze back to the plate in front of me, fighting that instinctual need to run with all my might as I obviously didn't want to make it worse, no matter how scared my wolf and I felt. This was happening. It was finally happening and I had no way to stop it.

Holy crap I wanted to cry so badly.