Leaves crunched beneath my sneakers. I glanced over my shoulder.
Thirty feet back, Jude walked at a steady pace. His hands rested deep in his jacket pockets.
I stopped on the sidewalk. He stopped too.
"Are you following me?" I called out, my voice carrying down the empty street.
"No," Jude replied. His tone remained entirely flat.
"You've walked exactly thirty feet behind me every day this week."
"I live on Elm Street now," he said, not closing the distance between us. "This is the way to school."
I crossed my arms. "There are three other routes."
"This one is fastest."
"You're creeping me out," I told him.
"Don't look back, then," he suggested.
He wasn't trying to be friends. He wasn't trying to bully me, either. He just existed in my orbit, a silent, looming shadow.
"Whatever," I muttered, turning around.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"
I froze. Nora stepped out from a nearby driveway, her cheerleading skirt swishing around her legs. She carried an air of absolute entitlement, a trait she inherited directly from her Alpha father.
"Nothing, Nora," I said.
She pointed a manicured finger at me, then at Jude. "You two are walking together."
"He's thirty feet behind me," I pointed out.
"Don't play dumb, Omega," Nora snapped. "You planned this. Trying to snag the new guy before anyone else can?"
"We just happen to take the same street," I argued, my jaw tightening.
Nora scoffed, her eyes darting to Jude. "Is she bothering you? I can have her dealt with."
Jude ignored Nora completely. He stepped off the curb and walked past both of us, crossing the street without a single word.
Nora flushed crimson. "See? He can't stand your stench. Keep away from him."
She spun on her heel and marched off toward the main road.
The rest of the morning passed in bizarre neutrality.
Jude took the seat next to mine in English. He didn't speak. He didn't pull out a notebook. He just stared at the whiteboard.
Nobody else approached him. The Alphas kept their distance, and the Betas were too intimidated by his size. We were a matched set of outcasts, though he chose his isolation while mine was forced.
The lunch bell rang, sending a rush of students into the hallways.
The cafeteria buzzed with teenage chaos. I navigated the crowded room and sat at my usual tiny table in the far back corner. Just me, a turkey sandwich, and a carton of milk.
A plastic tray slammed down onto the table.
I jumped, nearly knocking over my milk.
Jude slid into the chair directly across from me.
I stared at him. "What are you doing?"
He unwrapped a foil packet. "Eating."
"There are fifty empty tables in this room," I said.
"I sat here."
"People are going to stare."
Jude took a bite of his food. He didn't scan the room. He didn't care.
"Are you trying to make a point?" I asked, leaning forward. "Because if you sit with me, they'll turn on you. They already think you're defective."
"I don't care what they think," Jude rumbled.
"Then why sit here?" I pressed. "You don't talk to me. You don't want to be my friend. You don't even look at me during class."
Jude met my gaze. His gray eyes were cold. "I don't like crowded places. This corner is empty. Don't overthink it."
I sank back in my chair. "Fine."
We ate in silence for exactly three minutes.
Then, a piercing shriek shattered the noise of the cafeteria.
"Oh my god!"
I winced. Nora stood ten feet away, her hands clamped over her mouth in exaggerated horror.
Three of her friends flanked her, all holding up their phones. The camera lenses pointed straight at us.
"Are you kidding me?" I muttered, dropping my sandwich.
"Look at this!" Nora yelled, making sure the entire lunchroom heard her. "The pathetic Omega finally found someone desperate enough to tolerate her!"
The cafeteria went dead quiet. Every head turned toward our corner.
"Turn the cameras off, Nora," I warned, pushing my chair back.
"Why?" she mocked, stepping closer. "Don't you want everyone to know about your little romance? First you sneak around walking to school together, and now you're on a lunch date!"
"We aren't on a date," I said, my voice rising.
"Liar!" one of her friends shouted. "We saw you this morning! Sneaking around the neighborhood together."
Nora laughed, a sharp, cruel sound. "Jude and the damn Omega are hooking up! How disgusting is that?"
"Shut up," I snapped.
"Or what?" Nora sneered. She leaned over the table, shoving her phone right into my face. "You're a dirty breeder trying to infect the new guy. You probably begged him to sit here."
I reached up to push her phone away.
Before my fingers could make contact, a large hand clamped around Nora's wrist.
Jude didn't stand. He didn't yell.
He just squeezed.
Nora gasped, dropping the phone onto my tray. It clattered against my milk carton.
"Drop my arm," Nora demanded, her voice shaking slightly.
Jude tilted his head, his grip tightening.
"I said, unhand me!" she shrieked, her Alpha pride surging.
"You're too loud," Jude stated, his voice a low, dangerous rumble.
The cafeteria doors banged open.
Principal Croft marched in, flanked by two security guards.
"What is going on here?" the principal bellowed.
But my eyes weren't on the principal. They were glued to Jude's hand.
Dark, thick veins bulged across his knuckles, and a new scent suddenly flooded the air around us.
It wasn't just rain and pine anymore.
It was the unmistakable scent of blood.
